The Haven Chronicles: Origins
by Stormplains
Summary: They all knew they were different, that they weren't quite human. These are the stories of the mutants that make up the Haven, a place for troubled mutants, and how they arrived. A spiral off of D-Factor full of OCs submitted. *No prior knowledge required.
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer: The X-Men belong to Marvel. The OCs I continually feature belong to several different reviewers and authors. I will give credit to specific ones at the top of each chapter.**

**Warning on rating: There's cussing, sexual suggestions, sexual orientation factors (there's gays and lesbians), violence, blood, and death/killing. If any of this makes you extremely uncomfortable, don't read. (Although the most present factors are violence, cussing, and death/killing)**

This is the prologue to Haven Chronicles: Origins. I thank all of you who submitted OCs onto my D-Factor story. If you are just checking out this story here's what's going on:

The Haven is a place for young mutants who've basically done something illegal. It was started up by a pair of cousins (more on this later), and at this "current" time (December/winter break for those who are following D-Factor): Leo, Benj, and Ty have joined the Haven.

If you haven't checked out D-Factor yet try to bear with the in between snippets that will be every few chapters where very little is explained and it's just basic reaction and dialogue. Also, check out D-Factor if you enjoy this here.

And without further ado:

**Read. Enjoy. Review.**

* * *

"Toss me a light there Foxy."

A group of mutants were gathered in the common room of the Haven's second floor. It was a carved out stone room with brown rock walls, ceiling, and floor. The mutants had arranged themselves in a circle containing two couches and several chairs.

The mutant who spoke had bright red skin with devil's horns and shark teeth. Tyler Dyson, AKA Spades, was one of the newest members to Clay's squad. He smiled, baring his shark teeth, and sat back in the wooden chair he had pulled up. He wore a fire-proof orange and red vest that exposed his red chest and equally fire-proof black pants.

Another mutant turned his head irritated. Sionnach Fae, AKA Kitsune, growled. "You call me Foxy one more time Spades, I swear—"

"Relax, Sionnach." The mutant next to him sighed, placing a hand on Sionnach's arm. Cloak leaned closer to him and pressed his lips against the other boy's cheek.

Sionnach's face turned a deep maroon, matching his hair. He buried his face in his palm and turned away from Cloak.

Ty grinned at the pair, how long had it taken for the two of them to get it all figured out? A while, by his standards.

"Oh, all right…" Sionnach groaned, rubbing his hands together. With the friction it was easy for him to create a small blue flame that he held in his hand. He tossed it at Spades.

Tyler caught it in his hand and absorbed the heat. "Much better, now…" He extended his arms and let the heat roll off of him. Everyone smiled at the increased heat in the room.

"Damn, it's cold here." Sionnach sighed, sitting back on the couch.

"I hate the cold." A small voice said. It was Ashley, or Ash, Wolfe. She was probably the smallest mutant in the entire Haven. Not even five feet tall, the girl's voice matched her stature.

"You hate the heat!" Leo laughed. The mutant wore a thick leather chest plate, as well as brown shorts, and fingerless brown gloves.

"Yeah, well…" Ash muttered, drifting off.

"So, Clay what did you want us all here for?" Benj asked to the gray-skinned mutant. Unlike his brothers, he wore normal clothes, just jeans and a T-shirt.

Clay rubbed her bronze wrist guards, and shrugged. She had recently gotten into the habit of wearing the wrist guards all the time, and she rubbed them frequently as a sort of nervous habit. It was no wonder though, she had a lot on her plate.

"I just thought you guys have been with us now for nearly a month now, and you don't really know all of our stories, whereas we know yours."

"Actually, Clay… No one knows your whole story." Zendi said. She quickly glanced up at the ceiling when Clay gave her a look.

"Fine, this will be great for all of us." Clay grumbled.

Zendi jumped out of her seat and struck a pose. "How about we hear about the 'Adventures of Zendi, the Knife Wielding Elf'?"

"You'd be willin' to share the _whole_ thing?" Clay raised an eyebrow. "I thought some of it is hard for you to share."

She frowned and tossed her hair back behind her pointed ears. "If we're all willing to share our stories, I'll tell you guys everything."

Most of the mutants nodded and agreed. Then their eyes turned to Clay.

She folded her arms. Leo raised an eyebrow and nudged her with his elbow. Clay sighed.

"…fine! Just know, you guys won't like mine."

"Oh, come on, your family's not that—" Zendi started.

"YES THEY ARE!" Clay shouted. She took a deep breath. "Okay, Zen. You volunteered, so go on."

Zendi sat back down and scrunched up her face. Where to begin? Ah, yes… the beginning.

"So I first came to here when I was twelve, making me… what the third longest one here on our squad? How long have you been here, Cloak?"

The white hair mutant closed one eye and counted. "I was also twelve, but I am eighteen and a half… yes, six and a half years. Only Clay has been here longer."

"Well actually…" Clay interrupted. "Rena's been a part of the Haven since we found Richter."

"What?" Zendi said, shocked.

"It's a long story…" Both Clay and Rena said at the same time.

"Okay, Zen go on, then I guess Rena… you'll have to explain the next part. I'll give some input on it too."

Zendi gathered her thoughts again. "First came… yadda yadda… My parents were, possibly are, assassins. Both of my brothers were born with awesome powers, but when I was born…"


	2. Adventures of Zendi

**THANKS TO MAGICRAZY101 WHO SUBMITTED THE FABLOUS ZENDI IDNEZ!**

**Seriously, when I was writing this I felt like I was playing tackle football with some one's crystal football. I hope it's agreeable with magicrazy101, my longest reviewer. The _italics in the middle are "flashforwards" little views at the Haven while Zendi's telling her story._ It's mostly Zendi and Clay, but Cloak joins in with some singing at the beginning, and the other members ask some questions in between.**

**This is the history I was given, just... flowered up a bit. Here it is, after minor writer's block.**

**Enjoy. Read. Review.**

* * *

**Adventures of Zendi, the Knife Wielding Elf**

A man squeezed the hand of his wife in a small private hospital. The man had dark brown hair that fluttered down on his tan forehead. He leaned down and kissed the woman's head and rested back on his heels.

When the woman went into labor he smiled and stood right next to her.

"It's a girl." The nurse said in Italian. She returned the baby to her mother, freshly cleaned off.

The man smiled and knelt next to the bed, grinning at his new child. He looked at his wife with dark brown eyes.

"What should we name her?"

"I don't know Jacob, how about…" She trailed off, gazing at the girl's ears. "Jacob?"

The man, evidently Jacob, frowned and followed her eyes. The small baby girl in his wife's hands had dark curls on her head that came down around her pointed ears. Wait a minute… _pointed?_

"No… Damn it!" The man yelled, standing up furious. "We couldn't get lucky with this one? Ahh!" He slammed his fist into the wall.

"Sir!" The nurse came running back in. Suddenly she froze and stared absent-minded at the wall.

Jacob took a deep breath. He turned back around. His wife had a look of distaste on her face.

"This moves us backwards… we must hide her now." He sighed. His daughter's elfish ears would draw attention and suspicion out in the open, they had no choice.

"Zendi. Zendi Idnez." The woman said. "For setting us backwards…"

Jacob dismissed the nurse with a wave of his hand. "We must get moving."

* * *

_"You see, I think it would be awesome if we broke out into song here." Zendi laughed._

_Clay stared at her in disbelief. "What? Zen, what- how would that make sense?"_

_"You know, like from _Wicked? _The part at the end of _No One Mourns the Wicked_, where Elfy's father's all like: It's atrocious—"_

_"It's obscene!" Cloak joined in._

_"Like a frawny, ferny cabbage, the baby is unnaturally—"_

_"Zen, you had pointed ears, you weren't **green**." Clay rolled her eyes._

_"Yeah, well…"_

_"Just get on with the story."_

* * *

"Get up!" Jacob barked.

Zendi groaned and rolled out of her bed. Well, this week's bed. Her parents had a "job" in Germany this time. She never was quite sure where they were, but they always stowed her and her brothers in some empty building where they could train.

And train they did.

'_I meant it!_ 'Jacob's voice sliced through her thoughts. Zendi grimaced and jumped out of bed.

"I'm up Father." She said hastily in Italian. She was only seven.

"Training in ten."

Zendi sighed and threw on a plain gray T-shirt that brought out her tanned skin and slipped on a pair of pants. Grabbing her weapons belt she slung it on. She glanced quickly around the room in case she forgot something. Nope. All that was in there was a pile of clothing and a mattress.

Two boys ran by her door, one stopping and peering in.

"Hurry up Zendi, mom and dad's gotta go soon." He said.

She ran after him to a part of the warehouse they were in. This space was hastily cleared of crates, which were stacked crazily along the walls. Her bare feet pounded on the concrete floor, and she quickly overtook her brothers. She was fast, faster than most and far more agile, but her parents refused to see that as a power.

Her twin older brothers had developed early, displaying horribly destructive powers. As she reached the room she stopped and looked back at her two fourteen-year old brothers racing in.

They were nearly identical, both with the same dark Italian features the whole Idnez family shared.

Carter wore his hair cropped almost military-style, and his dark eyes glittered with held back power. He was able to project energy from his body (same as Havoc/Alex Summers), and he loved to show it off. He had thick leather gloves covering his hands, which helped him keep it at bay most of the time.

Her other brother, Daniel wore his hair cut shaggy; his dark hair reached the tops of his eyes. When they stopped alongside her, Daniel grinned. He often had a lopsided, wolfish grin on his face. Like his brother he was eager to display his powers, and loved destroying things. It took most of his effort not to lose control of his powers when they took effect, so usually… he didn't.

Jacob looked coolly at his children as they came in.

Zendi grimaced as she felt the prick of her father scanning their minds. Her brothers never seemed to mind, but she hated it. She couldn't hide anything from him and felt like she wasn't her own person. She needed to find a way to block him out.

'_You can try.'_

She flinched again and rubbed her temples, wishing for the thousandth time he'd just get out of her head.

'_You've made no new adjustments, Zendi. Your powers are still not showing._' Her father's voice rang in her head.

"I'm… trying." Zendi muttered.

"Well, try harder." Jacob said. "Your brothers," he extended his hand toward his sons, "displayed powers at your age now. If we continue to push you, they'll show."

"Maybe she's nothing." Daniel suggested, rolling his eyes. "A human, unpowered."

"Nah, she's got them ears." Carter laughed. "She's definitely mutant… not powerful… but a mutant."

Zendi's cheeks burned. They talked like this all the time when she was around. Like she was nothing. It only made her want to prove herself more.

"Jacob," a woman said, walking into the area. It was their mother, Julie. A talented shape-shifter, she was what made their… operations… work well. "Let's get started, our clients want to meet us at noon." She said in German.

Zendi frowned. Her parents spoke a ton of languages, and when they started speaking in one the kids were expected to do so as well. German was harsh, full of grinding sounds, Zendi always felt like she was shouting angrily in German.

Daniel smiled. "What first? Carnage?" He asked excitedly.

'Carnage' was the word they nicknamed one of the training styles they used. It involved breaking pretty much everything.

"Daniel, you know we always do Carnage last." Zendi said. Her brother shot her an angry look and she turned away.

Jacob stepped forward. "I think we'll do some weapons training today." The light faded from the twins' eyes. "…And then Carnage."

Zendi was excited. She was good with weapons, they were something she didn't have to use some sorta power with. She reached inside her belt and pulled out two small throwing knives.

A row of targets was quickly set up. Jacob put a table nearby and spread out an array of weapons. There were a few pistols, some knives, a bow and arrows, and a small machine gun.

"Knives first." He said, tossing one to each of his sons. "Zendi you first."

The girl stepped up to the line they had drawn and took aim at the target in front of her. It was one of those typical archery targets with different colored rings. She looked straight at the center and brought her arm back.

With a quick motion she sent the knife flying at the target. It embedded itself directly in the center, quickly followed by her second knife.

"Bravo." Jacob smiled. "At least you can do something."

And the praise melted into insult. Typical.

Daniel shouldered his sister out of the way and brought his arm back. He was holding a somewhat bigger knife, but that shouldn't have made a difference… except, of course, he was holding it completely wrong.

Zendi backed up and ducked behind the table.

Her brother flicked his wrist and it went tumbling over the target only to clatter against the concrete behind it.

Jacob sighed. "Carter, please do better."

Daniel snarled, and watched his brother.

Carter toed the line and flung the knife at the target. His at least hit, although only in the third ring.

"If you boys do that, the mark will live." Their mother scolded. She picked up a knife as well and threw it accurately into the target.

Jacob went over to Carter and Julie to Daniel. They adjusted the boys' stances and throwing arm. The next time they tried was better, kinda. Daniel threw the knife over his shoulder and it nearly took Julie's head off.

"Let's try something else, _please._" Zendi whined. Her brothers were only talented with their powers it seemed.

Next was guns, which Zendi always found to be clunky. She accurately hit the target with her bullets, but it just didn't seem right in her hands.

Luckily, the twins were good at this form of distance attack, there were no mishaps.

After trying bows and arrows, which all the kids proved to be horrible at, their parents went back to knife throwing.

Zendi hit the target repeatedly and was allowed to sit back and watch for once.

Daniel was slowly improving, as was Carter, but they were still horrible.

After missing the target for the fifth time Carter grew frustrated and pointed his finger at the target as if it were a gun. He shot an energy blast from his finger and obliterated the target.

"Knives are pointless, I got power that will do it for me!"

Daniel looked over his shoulder at his brother and smiled wolfishly. "CARNAGE!"

Jacob and Julie looked at each other and shrugged. "Go ahead. Carnage."

Daniel smiled again and crouched so his hands were on the ground. With an entertained snarl his body changed from human to what looked an awful lot like a werewolf.

Dark brown shaggy hair covered his body, long black claws extended from his hands like talons, his head was completely transformed into that of a wolf's, and long pointed white teeth poked out.

He sprung at the target and ripped it to shreds. Turning he starting attacking the other remaining targets.

Zendi backed up to the table and grabbed another knife. Chances were Daniel would lose control and she already had a few scars from the last time.

* * *

Zendi hated training sessions. Over the years they grew worse and worse, this one being the pinnacle of them so far. She was now nearly twelve. She would go straight from combat training with her father, to mind-blocking him, to combat with her mother. Her parents were anxious to reveal her powers, since her brothers were already well into the family business of assassins. Carter was extremely good at it. Daniel was good in his own way. His attacks were always blamed on the ever mysterious "dangerous beast".

And Zendi… was pushed until she thought she was going to die.

Her father swung an arm at her, she ducked and rolled out of his reach. They no longer practiced with weapons, only hand-to-hand now, in hopes she'd be forced into using her powers.

"Don't hold back on me Zendi!" Her father roared, launching a roundhouse kick.

She swore and dodged out of the way. Blocking blows she wound her way in closer to her father and struck out at his pressure points. She succeeded in hitting one on his shoulder, but he was fast and smacked her across the head. Zendi went flying back and hit the wall a few feet away. Her head struck the wall hard.

Her father went over and pulled her up, dazed. When he saw she wasn't going to continue fighting he let go.

Zendi held herself up on her hands and knees. The floor spun beneath her.

"Get up, we aren't done."

She shook her head, her hair dangling in front of her face.

Jacob knelt in front of her and grabbed her chin in his hands, snapping her head up. He frowned.

"You want to prove you're not human, don't you? He whispered.

Zendi felt the prick of his mind, but by now she was prepared. After years of never having a private thought she was finally able to have an impenetrable mind shield. Tears stung her eye but she looked straight at her father.

"I'm _not _human. And I'm done with you pushing me around." She spat.

Her father frowned more and dropped his hand. "Fine. Clean up, your mother and I have work to do."

Zendi got up shakily and ducked inside the nearby hallway. Blending in with the shadows she listened intently to the conversation her parents were having.

"She's still not progressing…" Her mother muttered. "How is that possible?"

"A lot of times mutant genes present themselves at adolescence, maybe more time is necessary… or…"

"Or maybe we can force her to use it. She probably already has it figured out."

"Possibly." Her father said, sending shivers down Zendi's spine. "She is blocking her thoughts from me so I can't be sure."

Her mother lowered her voice even more, as if she suspected Zendi was listening (which of course, she was). "Let's try something new… I bet Daniel, or one of our old… _friends _can convince her."

Zendi's eyes widened. She turned down the hallway and backed slowly into her room.

* * *

_"Your parents were goin' to send your brother after you?" Leo asked, shocked._

_"They weren't the most… loving."_

_"Well...? Did they?" Portal interrupted._

_"Shut it, she's tryin' to finish." Clay snarled._

* * *

Zendi took a deep breath and leaned against the rough brick wall. She was in a little alleyway in a small city cradled in the hills of France.

Her father had for months been trying to expose her powers by placing her in increasingly dangerous situations. Soon, she would be dead.

She laughed to herself as she turned the corner and walked down the street. _Yes,_ her being dead would be extremely helpful to her parents.

A cool breeze blew by and she turned the collar on her black trench coat up. Walking down the street she observed the people on the street. No doubt one of them would spring at her. That's how her life had been going for a while.

After looking at a few passersby, one in a large brimmed hat caught her eye. The man had dark tan skin and his shaggy hair fell from the hat. He looked up and smiled at her, exposing a snaggle-tooth grin.

_Daniel._

Zendi backed up, crashing into a man behind her. He shouted something in French, but she wasn't paying attention.

She turned and sprinted down the street. A snarl sounded behind her and screams came from the small crowd.

"_Loup-garou!__" _ Werewolf, apparently superstitions hadn't died out.

Racing down the street Zendi jumped over a table in front of a small restaurant. She kept running as the crowd around her screamed. Her advanced agility kicked in and she quickly out ran her pursuer.

Taking a sharp turn she ran down an alley she thought cut through to the other side of the block. A crimson brick wall greeted her. She slammed her fist into the wall, frustrated.

With her back turned and her mind focused on something else she was surprised to felt the sting of a claw across her back.

"Ahh!" She screamed, whirling around.

A dark shaggy beast loomed between her and the exit to the alley.

Zendi felt the blood trickling down her back. She took a huge breath and confronted her brother.

"Daniel, come on…" She started, but he lunged at her with a bloodthirsty glare in his eye. She ducked under his claw and punched slightly above where his arm met his chest.

He stumbled back a little then growled, slashing at his sister again. This time he cut her upper arm, letting loose a gush of blood.

Zendi leaned back against the wall, while clamping one hand over her wound in attempt to staunch the flow of blood.

"Come on, use your powers sis! Oh wait… that's right…" Daniel barked a laugh, "You have no powers! How sad for you… mom and dad said to stop when they showed…" He sprang at her.

For some reason, her first instinct was to jump back onto the wall. She perched above Daniel's head as he smashed into the wall.

_Wait a minute… why aren't I falling?_

Zendi's hands and balls of her feet were touching the wall and not allowing her to fall back down. It wasn't much of a power, being able to stick to walls, but for right now, she'd take it.

Daniel growled and gnashed his teeth at her.

Seeing her opening she climbed a little farther up the wall and jumped and summersaulted over Daniel's head.

In his confusion she was able to get away.

_I'm never going to forgive them for this one._

* * *

_"Well that wasn't very nice…" Leo muttered._

_"Like I said, they only wanted to know what my power was."_

_"Okay… so…"_

_"If you guys would stop interrupting, MAYBE YOUR QUESTIONS WOULD BE ANSWERED!" Clay shouted._

_"…Uh so… as I was saying, soon after I was attacked by Daniel, my mom died. She was killed in a fight between her and a human that came from trying to take out a mark. It shook up my family pretty bad. Suddenly my father didn't care as much, though he still regarded me as something not worth his time. The next job he took was in America, Virigna to be exact. That's when I ran… soon after you guys found me…"_

* * *

A tanned hand grasped the window sill. With a heave, the girl pulled herself inside the apartment. Zendi had grown considerably in the last few months, fending for yourself can do that. She'd gained a whole new layer of muscle, and grew a few inches. She wore complete black, and her thick belt around her waist.

The sun was just barely poking up above the horizon, the sky a dusty pink, welcoming in a new day.

Zendi threw a bag of groceries down on the floor and collapsed on a couch by the window. She normally slept all day, then went to work at night. She stole things she needed mostly, but her nightly excursions were gathering attention from the police.

It gave her a bit of a rush, stealing was risky and fun. Always the possibility of getting caught!

Lately she'd taken up annoying some company named GEOtech, who constantly bragged about their awesome security system. She made it her job to take them down a peg.

She yawned and stretched out on the couch. She threw off her pair of orange tinted pilot goggles, a… "gift"… from her father.

The apartment was very rundown, in a rundown and mostly abandoned part of the city. The land owner wasn't concerned with the random people who stayed in various apartments, most still paid some sort of rent or a kind of fail-safe so they got their keys. Zendi was one of those, she paid some money now and then if the owner said anything to her, and no one gave her trouble.

The dry wall on the walls and ceiling was cracked, the wall paper peeling, and only some of the lights worked, but all in all, it could be worse.

Zendi was about to lie down and sleep when she heard a noise from the other side of the room, behind the solitary counter that served the entire kitchen purpose. She sprang up and drew a knife from her belt.

Someone leaned against the counter dressed in complete tan. They had a tan cloth mask over their face, bronze wrist guards, and leather boots. When Zendi sprang up, they glanced lazily over and waved their hand.

"Oh put the knife away, I ain't here to hurt you." They were female, and spoke in one of those strange American accents.

Zendi still stood at the ready with her knife out.

"Explain what you're doing here, or I'll stick you." Zendi growled, not backing down. The other girl made as to move forward, and Zendi drew her arm back. "Stay where you are."

The girl shrugged. "Alright, I'm Clay Dune." She took off her mask, revealing skin the color of clay, her startling neon green eyes absorbing Zendi's attention. "Like I said, I'm not here to hurt you. Yeah, sure it's kinda weird I just popped in here… but don't worry… I do this to a lot of people." She laughed. "The look on Nuju's face…" She trailed off. "Uh, sorry, _good times_…"

Zendi raised an eyebrow, a shocked look on her face.

_Great… some wacko's invaded my room._

"You got powers, don't you?" Clay said, standing straight. "I saw you climb up here. No hand grips, just straight up a wall. Impressive."

"Not what my father thinks." Zendi said before she could stop herself. Clamping her mouth shut she glared at the stranger. This _Clay Dune_ wasn't much older than her, maybe fifteen at the most, but something about her just radiated a sense of maturity. This was someone used to doing things for herself and others, without any reward.

"Yeah, I've heard of your father… don't like him much." Clay shrugged. "So how's it livin' on your own?"

The shocked look still stuck on her face, Zendi was unwilling to talk to this crazy.

Clay smiled. "You think I'm absolutely wacko. Just hear me out, okay? After that you can do whatever you want to me."

"Fine."

"Great! You ever hear of mutants?"

"Yes." Zendi paused. "You're one too, aren't you?"

"Yep! I guess you could call me a shape-shifter." She judged Zendi's reaction. Zendi didn't change her facial expression. "You know, it's hard to figure things out on your own. How would you like to join a team exploring their powers?"

Zendi didn't answer.

"Listen," Clay lowered her voice. "I was in your same spot a few years ago. Trust me when I say it's nice to have some people to catch you when you fall."

Suddenly Clay seemed a lot more normal, more like a girl offering help than a creepy wacko in an apartment she had no business being in.

"Alright… I guess I'll try it out." Zendi said, lowering her knife.

Clay grinned and turned to her right.

"Dusk, if you would stop hiding in the shadows…"

A man stepped, literally, out of the shadows. It was impossible to tell his age, or much about him due to his mask. He wore a mask that looked similar to Slade's from Teen Titans, only solid purple. He wore light armor that glinted midnight black and purple.

"Welcome to the Haven." His voice washed over her like warm soothing honey. "I hope you like it there."

Shadows swirled around them and Zendi felt like she was being wrenched away from reality. When she got her footing again she was inside the Haven's arena. It was huge.

"Woah…"

* * *

**Now onto Rena/Fenris. Might be a little while, D-Factor's due for an update (I have some Bionicle mask power research to do!)**

**And thanks to everyone who submitted an OC. Remain patient, eventually they'll be here too.**

**(Oh and anyone reading D-Factor know who Dusk is?)**


	3. Tale of Fenris

**Disclaimer: This lovely OC belongs to AvengedVeralin, the history, appearance, powers, all theirs. I simply flowered it up a bit. (Oh and although X-men aren't meantioned, they're Marvel's)**

After an extremely long wait and a painful rewritting process of one passage in here, I have finally accomplished it! There's a lot more Nick Darth in this chapter, originally there was Clay as well, but then I realized that's not how I wanted history to go.

Please enjoy the tale of everyone's favorite wolf-dog.

**Enjoy. Read. Review.**

* * *

**The Tale of Fenris**

"_Okay, so I don't exactly have a fantastic title, like Zendi did…" Rena said with a slight laugh. She was still in her wolf-dog form, as she normally was, and her ears tilted down slightly as she made a suggestion. "But maybe we could just go with something simple like: __The Tale of Fenris__?"_

"_Sounds good to me." Clay said. She looked around at those in the circle then back to Rena. "Mind if I start it out? Richter was an old friend of my father's. I know the beginning a little better than you."_

_Rena nodded. "Go ahead."_

"_From what we can tell, Rena wasn't born like everyone else…"_

* * *

A park ranger was hiking up a Yosemite trail. He must have been in his early twenties. Freckles were splashed across his face, he had brown hair, and was about six feet tall.

He started from a ranger post a little while away, but the heat of the day was getting to him. Wiping some sweat off his brow he stopped for a quick breath and took a look around.

The view was stunning, as it always was, but he was on a mission. Someone had called in an abandoned wolf pup and he was supposed to be finding it. He looked around in the underbrush quickly before continuing to move on.

After a few more yards he heard faint crying noises. Stopping to locate the source of the sound he turned slowly. Next to a tree a little ways off the path was a tiny new-born pup. The ranger looked around for any parent in sight, but found none. He took off his pack and grabbed a small towel from the pocket inside.

Carefully creeping forward he murmured to the pup. "Hey there now, it's alright. Richter's here to save the day." He scooped the pup up in the towel and stood. The pup's fur was a dark brown, but also had streaks of copper and black.

"You're a strange little one, aren't you?" He whispered, rubbing the pup a little with the towel, trying to clean it up. "You're mamma and papa just left you here? Well that's not right…"

A thought popped into the ranger's mind. "I'll take good care of you though."

He started walking back to a small wooden cabin in the midst of the forest. It was the smallest ranger station, only meant to be manned by one person due to its location. There was very little trouble started in that area.

Elbowing the door open, he walked inside. It had a cozy feel, with a counter with a radio on top surrounded by a few cabinets, a tiny fridge, and a make shift bed in the corner; there was also a small stone fireplace and a wooden chair in another corner. The ranger had to stay into the night often, so sometimes having a place to crash until the morning was nice.

The ranger slid the chair over to the front of the fireplace and set the pup down gently on the seat. The pup squirmed a little and cried out again.

Reaching a hand out, the ranger settled it down with a touch. "Shh, calm down, you'll be plenty safe here."

He stood from his crouch and went over to the counter. He switched the radio on and rummaged through the cabinets. Finding what he was looking for he went to the fridge and pulled a carton of milk out.

"I know this probably isn't what you're used to, but we gotta get you in good health so you can grow and learn." The ranger said to the pup, pouring the milk in a bottle and walking back over to the pup.

The pup cried again, as if it sensed the proximity of the food. This time it wiggled out from under part of the towel that the ranger had draped over the pup.

The ranger laughed and held the bottle to its muzzle. The pup sucked greedily at it and calmed down.

"Someone's hungry, aren't they?" The ranger laughed. He petted its head. "Now what should we call you?"

The pup rolled over, as if to say: _"Pet my belly!"_ He laughed again and complied, racking his brain for names. Finally one struck him.

"I know… _Rena…_"

* * *

Rena, the wolf-dog, bounded through the forest after her guardian. Her dark brown fur blended in with the shadows, but the streaks of copper shone in the spots of sun between the leaves.

Her guardian, Richter the ranger, walked ahead of her, brushing some of the underbrush aside. He sensed Rena's great joy before he heard her running up behind him.

"Don't get so far behind, Rena." Richter said, turning around to see her charge at him. "Ahh!" He yelled as Rena tackled him and started licking his face. He couldn't help but laugh and shoved her off. "Ahh, come on Rena! Really?" He smiled and waved her over, signaling he wanted her to walk beside him.

She complied and barked happily. They made their way to the ranger station and the ranger opened the weathered door. She halted suddenly and her ears shot straight up and her noise twitched.

A small squirrel scampered over a large tree root behind Rena and halted when it saw her. Its own nose twitched as it stood frozen like a statue.

"Rena, no—" The ranger started.

Rena whirled around and shouted. "SQUIRREL!" She bolted after the squirrel as it took off.

"Wait, wait! Rena!" Richter yelled as she ran off. He crashed through the underbrush after her.

The wolf-dog wasn't paying attention to her guardian running after her, she only cared about the tiny rodent in front of her. She also did not notice that for the first time, she spoke. That was just no concern of hers, there was a **SQUIRREL**!

Around bushes and under the leaves she ran, chasing for fun. Finally the squirrel sprinted up a tree, leaving Rena barking behind on the ground.

"_Ruff! _Ey! Get down here!" She barked, putting her forepaws on the tree trunk.

Richter ran up huffing and puffing, holding his side. "Yeesh Rena, do you have to run _so_ fast?"

"Yes." Rena stated, keeping her different colored eyes on the squirrel teasing her from the tree.

The man blinked at her. "Did you just… _speak_?"

Rena stopped barking at the tree and fell back onto all four paws. She turned her body to look at Richter. She too blinked.

_Well that was new…_

The wolf-dog opened her muzzle again then shut it quickly. She made a bit of a face and then attempted to speak again, thinking of the strange vocal patterns her guardian used.

"Y…yes." She said hesitantly. Finding it easier than she thought, she tried again. "You talk. I talk."

He blinked again. It made a bit of sense; he'd been getting empathic senses from her that neither normal dogs, nor wolves, had. Perhaps…

"Wh…why can I talk?" Rena asked, her voice heavily confused.

Richter pulled his mind out of his thoughts and looked down at the pup. He bent and sat in front of her, opening his palms up to her. She nuzzled his hands and laid her head in his lap.

"I… I don't know for sure. It's possible that you're not quite a wolf-dog, you might actually be human." He said, his voice drifting off at the end.

Rena snapped her head up in surprise, and backed away from him. She growled and sat on her hunches. "I am not human."

"You're right. You're not human." Richter confirmed, his tone still shady. "I… don't really know how it works, but some people have special abilities. I have a feeling your one of them."

* * *

Richter and Rena pulled up to the gates of the park in his small car. The wolf-dog was sticking her head out the window and having a great time as usual.

As the ranger rolled down his window to talk to the guy at the gates he noticed a college aged kid behind the man who normally ran the booth. The kid had jet black hair buzz cut close to his head, and odd purple eyes. He leaned back against the far side of the gate booth in a ranger's uniform.

"Morning Richter!" The man at the booth said, drawing the ranger's attention. "How's Rena doin'?"

Rena barked from the passenger seat happily, the man laughed.

"Pretty good I believe!" Richter said. He nodded toward the college kid, who was now calmly closing his eyes while leaning against the wall. "Who's the kid?"

The man looked back at the college kid, then turned to Richter. "New intern, impressive kid actually… He's double majoring in History and Education, a minor in Psychology. I say he's gotta be partially insane to do all that." He leaned closer to the ranger's car. "The kid's got some money, I don't know why he wanted to work here though… he had a lot of other options… I'm gonna stick him with you."

Rena growled slightly, and muttered amidst the growls. "I don't like interns."

Richter sent her a scolding look and hushed her. "Quiet!" He turned back to the man at the gate. "Are you sure about that?"

"Yep, you have the smallest zone and I figure he can't do much harm that way."

Richter sighed. "Alright," He called over to the kid. "Hey kid! Hop in, you're with me!"

The kid's eyes opened slowly and he walked over to the ranger's car. They parked and then began to make their way to the ranger station.

Rena nosed the new kid's hand and sniffed it. He didn't _seem_ harmful, but she didn't like that he was intruding.

The kid looked down at her and knelt, offering her his fist to sniff some more. Satisfied that she wasn't going to bite him, the kid calmly pet Rena's head.

"Alright, come on kid." Richter said, walking on.

"You know, I gotta name!" The kid called, jogging slightly to catch up. The ranger wasn't going easy on him, taking the trails most heavily covered with undergrowth. Rena bounded happily next to them, keeping an eye on the new kid.

"So do I," Richter said, laughing a little. He stopped finally, allowing the kid to catch up. "I'm Richter." He said, sticking his hand out.

"Nick." The kid said, shaking his hand. "Listen, I know I'm new, but don't go easy on me." The kid's voice was soft and soothing, a bit of a surprise to Richter. "I can handle myself."

The ranger smiled and looked down at Rena, who also had a slight smirk on her muzzle. "You heard him, Rena. Let's go!"

The pair instantly took off down the trail at full speed.

Nick grinned. He waited until they were nearly out of eyesight before taking off after them. The shadows in the underbrush quivered slightly as he chased after them.

* * *

"_Nick proved himself to be more than just some college kid looking for a job. He became good friends with both I and Richter." Rena said. She looked at Clay. "Your dad is pretty cool."_

_Clay glanced a little sadly at the ceiling. "Yeah, I miss the days we just hung out. Damn responsibilities."_

"_Did not you two roam the country for a while?" Cloak asked, sitting up on the couch, and causing Sionnach's arm to fall from around his shoulders._

_Clay nodded. "Oh yeah, that was fun. Maybe I'll tell you a bit about it some time." She glanced at Rena. "You gonna continue? Maybe more Darth stuff?"_

_Rena nodded and bared her teeth in a smile. "I think I am."_

* * *

Thunder boomed outside of the small ranger station. A flash of lightning was seen through the rain streaked glass followed by more rumbling thunder.

Inside the cabin a small fire crackled in a stone fireplace. Rena lay curled up in front of it, steam gently rising off her damp fur. By now she was nearly fully grown, but still maintained the puppy-like look in her face.

Richter walked over from the small counter and pulled the wooden chair close to the fire.

"Hey Rena, do you know what today is?" Richter asked.

Rena looked up sleepily and yawned widely. "Hmmm… you're going to tell me either way."

"You're right! It's the anniversary of when I found you not too far away."

The wolf-dog perked her ears up and opened her mouth slightly to look like a smile. "So that makes me—?"

"Nine years old, just about." Richter filled in.

"I'm an old pup." Rena sighed. She went to lay her head back down, then she looked up. "How come I'm not aging right? Wouldn't I look like a mature dog by now?"

Her guardian shrugged. "I don't know."

A hasty knock at the door halted their conversation. Richter frowned and glanced at the windows. "Why would someone be out in this downpour?"

Rena barked and jumped up. The ranger went over to the door and opened it. Outside was a man in a sleek hooded black raincoat.

"May I come in?" The man asked.

Rena barked again. "Nick!"

The wet man walked in and shook off some rain. He removed his raincoat and muddy boots, then hung the raincoat up on a hook near the door. His hair was just as jet black, and shaved close to his head. He turned his purple eyes to the wolf-dog.

"Rena!" He called, smiling. She ran up and placed her paws on his chest. Nick grabbed her arms and danced her around. "How are you?"

"Great!" She barked. He released her arms and she thudded back to the ground.

"How long has it been? Nearly a year?" Nick laughed, ruffling her ears.

Rena barked in agreement.

Richter smiled. "Hello Nick. What brings you here on such a rainy night?"

Nick's smile faded and he gestured to the chair. "You may want to sit. You too Rena." He said to the pair.

They glanced suspiciously at each other but sat.

Nick ran a hand through his short hair, and straightened a silver tie that was around his neck. He was dressed in jeans and a long-sleeved black dress shirt. He was never one to underdress.

"Well I've been doing some research on Rena's… abilities." Nick started. He took a deep breath and continued. "She, you, and I all have something called the Advanced X-Gene; which gives us super-human abilities."

Rena frowned. "I'm not human though."

"No, you're a mutant. Obviously a powerful one, your X-Gene was active before you were even born." Nick stated. "Not many are born that way, the ones that are have more power than they realize."

"Nick, why are you here?" Richter asked again.

Nick's left eye twitched, a trait he hadn't displayed before. A new light blue and wavy scar was etched over his left eye. Richter didn't like the sense he was getting from him, _something_ had happened.

"I'm trying to assemble a team that is willing to find and rescue people like us. I'm having some success, but… I'm trying to get it up and running. I've found a suitable location for our base of operations and it should be ready soon. I need, well I _want_, your help."

Rena was thoroughly bewildered. First off, she _was _human, if only partially. Then Nick was acting suspiciously. It wasn't like him. She knew something was wrong. He'd kept in touch even after his internship ended, coming back every once in a while and having hushed conversations with her guardian. Now she knew what they were about, her being a mutant. Richter wouldn't turn down Nick's plea for help… but Nick had money, why couldn't he just hire help, or find someone else?

Richter sighed and leaned back in his chair. "You know I can't say no to you, Nick. What do you need?"

"I wanted to ask you two to join me. So far it's only me, my daughter, and a few others, but—" Nick started, until he saw the peculiar looks on the others faces.

The pair glanced at each other. There was no way Nick had a daughter, he was still a young guy, probably about twenty-seven, but he never mentioned anything to them about a child.

"You don't have a daughter, Nick." Rena stated bluntly.

Nick shrugged. "You're right, I don't… but this is my cousin, and she needs someone who can be a better father to her than she's had." He looked back at the pouring rain outside the window. "So… are you interested?"

Rena growled a little, expressing her displeasure. Something just wasn't right.

"We have a home here, we aren't interested in uprooting." Rena stated.

Nick held up his hands. "Please, allow me to explain some more… I want to make sure you get a full picture of what I'm offering before you say no for sure."

Richter gestured for him to go on. "Alright, go ahead."

"We're setting up a safe haven of sorts for mutants like us. When it's completed I'd love if you two would join us. It'll be a place where we can explore our powers and abilities in peace."

The wolf-dog turned to her guardian and studied his face. It was blank, but she saw that he was trying to get a reading on Nick's words. It was tempting, she supposed, but they were happy where they were.

Richter shook his head. "Thanks for the offer, Nick, but we don't need a safe place to stay. We have one here."

Nick nodded. "I understand, but the invitation doesn't expire, you're plenty welcome to join us at any time."

"The Haven is always open to you."

* * *

"_So I guess Rena really was a part of the Haven before me." Zendi said, mocking a little bit of sadness._

_Clay shrugged. "I guess you could say that. Nick couldn't convince the two of them to come with us, but he extended an open invitation."_

"_Okay, well… so what happened next?" Leo asked. He looked at Rena, whose head was drooping a little like she was remembering something sad._

"_A lot happened in between then and now, but the most significant was Richter's death." Rena said sadly. "I suppose I was about twelve at the time…"_

* * *

The day was just like any other, Rena and Richter patrolled their given area, looking for trouble and fires in need of extinguishing. Rena used her abilities as a wolf to listen and smell things Richter couldn't.

That day she heard a fierce growl then the stomping of feet. She froze in their patrol and barked to get Richter's attention.

The ranger stopped and listened as well. Suddenly there was a splattering of gunshot.

"Hunters?" Rena asked.

"Must be… but it's not authorized right now, come on!"

The two charged off in the direction the sound came from. As they ran more booming cracks were heard as well as a cry of pain from what must have been a bear.

"Idiots! We're more likely to find them dead than that bear!" Rena shouted.

"Hush now, no need to freak 'em out more by talking." Richter said quickly. He reached over his back and pulled out the rifle that was strung across it.

The underbrush and trees began to clear and they approached an open clearing. Richter and Rena slowed, the ranger taking aim at the nearest poacher.

There were several hunters in a mix of camouflage and neon orange vests, all with riffles, shooting at a medium-sized shaggy bear that was bleeding in several places. The hunters were laughing and seemingly having a good time. The bear collapsed suddenly just as the ranger and his dog reached the site. It moaned in pain and attempted to get up again.

"Hey!" Richter called out. The hunters turned. "Put the weapons down and step back!" The ranger cocked his own gun and pointed it at the nearest hunter.

With their attention occupied the bear began to pull itself away from the clearing. Rena heard and understood its cries of pain and grew furious. The hunters noticed it was getting away as well.

"The bear!" The one closest to the wolf-dog yelled, turning back to shoot.

Rena sprung forward without thinking and clamped her jaws down around the man's neck. The man shrieked and dropped his gun, falling to the ground. When Rena stood above him after the fall she noticed he was no longer breathing.

The other hunters noticed too and took aim at her and Richter. Complete chaos ensued.

Bullets whistled by overhead as Rena tackled another hunter, sinking her teeth and claws into his back. Things seemed to move in slow motion as she heard a cry from Richter. Startled, she whirled around.

The ranger clutched a spot above his heart and fell to his knees.

"RICHTER!" Rena screamed, her whole world seemingly falling apart. She watched him gasp one last time and the light flicker out from his eyes.

She screamed in pain again, her anguish expanding outward. Suddenly a ripple of sound expanded from around her, the wall of sound crashing into the hunters and flinging them into the trees with such force some of the long-standing trees snapped like twigs. The dirt and rock was kicked up with the sonic blast as well, casting a shadow as the dust settled.

Rena was devastated and horrified by what had happened. She glanced down at her hands.

_Hands?_

She examined herself quickly, running her new found fingers over her face and hair. No longer was she a wolf-dog, but instead a girl looking around the age of thirteen. Her wolf ears remained, but now stuck above dark brown hair streaked with black and copper, and her teeth and nails remained sharp and deadly. Her eyes were still different colors, the left was blue and the right was amber. She was athletically built, and about five foot two inches. Rena was relieved to find her tail also remained, the same color it had been.

After she recovered from that shock she staggered weakly over to Richter's body. She knelt beside him and grabbed his hand.

"Please… please…" She choked out. Tears streaked down her face, but no matter how much she didn't want it to be true, she knew it was.

Richter stared lifelessly at the sky, clutching his chest. With a small sob Rena reached out and closed his eyes with her fingers. How had things gotten this way?

She just wanted to stay there, beside him… forever; but she knew that wasn't an option. Death was a part of life, and one life, no matter how important, could not stop others from living.

Taking a shaky breath she stood and tried focusing on being a wolf-dog again. She found it impossible at that time so she sighed. She would need clothes. Painstakingly she peeled a vest off of one of the hunters and figured that would be good until she got back to the ranger station. She knew that Richter had always kept spare clothing there.

Rena sprinted all the way there and threw the door open. Quickly she dug a pair of his shorts, a T-shirt, and shoes out of one of the cabinets. She threw them on hastily and clumsily, the thumbs would take some getting used to but they sure were handy. Heh, handy.

She couldn't remain at the park. She had to keep moving… maybe it was time to join society.

* * *

Rena ducked into an alleyway. The sun was directly above, annoyingly bright. She was adjusting to life in a city, slowly. It was so bizarre, few trees, few wildlife, and too much concrete. Of course, there were squirrels… but that wasn't enough for her.

Life as a human was much harder than she thought. Humans required money to do almost **anything**, and it was hard to come by. By now she had mastered transforming between human and wolf-dog, a skill she found helpful. There were some places that she could only get into as a wolf-dog, while other times she needed to be a human.

Her human guise wasn't very convincing if anyone paid attention. She didn't get technology, she took things as offenses that weren't, and body language didn't always tell the truth. She could read, write, and speak, but anyone could tell there was something off about her.

At the current time she was staying in an empty loft at the top of one of the buildings she was walking in between now. She made her way over to the fire escape and made as to grab the ladder.

"Hey girlie, where you goin'?" A gruff voice said behind her.

She swore and growled, turning around slowly. Rena had been approached a few times by this same group of thugs; they promised work and money, but she didn't trust them at all.

She came face-to-face with a thug with a scruffy face, brown hair, and that stank of tobacco and alcohol.

"Buzz off, eh?" Rena snarled.

_Wrong answer_. The thug slammed her up against the gray-white brick wall behind her. "The job openin's still open, I t'ink you be'er take it."

Rena looked around at the other thugs around her, five in total. She knew what they wanted her to do, but she wasn't about to sell herself away like that.

"I told you _no._" She said bluntly. She still couldn't figure out why they wanted her, and not some other girl. She'd acquired a heavy vest with a hood that hid her ears, and was forced to wear a long trench coat over the rest of her clothing. _Apparently_ people "freaked out" when they saw you had a tail. She wasn't the prettiest, but she guessed the thugs were hoping she'd be easy to manipulate because she was on her own and just barely getting by.

The thug slammed her back again and smiled. "It's easy money, darlin'… all you gotta do is make a few clients happy."

A cold shiver ran up her spine. Rena shook her head and glared at them coldly. "I'm warning you, go away _now!_"

"Or what?"

Rena shouted and slammed her hands together. The result was a sonic wave that ran into the thugs, sending them flying into the brick wall behind. As the dust the wave picked up settled she noticed the screaming of car alarms. The thugs weren't moving.

"Damn…" Rena whispered. Looked like she would have to bolt again.

The wailing of police sirens sounded to either side of the alleyway. She was trapped. Backing up to the wall behind her she looked up to the fire escape and made as to grab the ladder again.

"Hey you, stop!" A policeman fresh on the scene shouted.

She began to climb hurriedly up and sliced the rusting metal with her claws once she was all the way up. The fire escape fell to the ground below with a sickening groan and an echoing crash. Rena scrambled in the window of the loft.

The sight that met her was one she never expected to see again.

In front of her was Nick, his hair as black as ever, his eyes still plenty purple. He was dressed in black spandex layered over with midnight purple armor. He looked sadly at her.

"Do you know how long we've been trying to find you?" He asked, his voice melodious and full of caring.

Rena fought back emotions at a friendly face. "Nick…" She stood staring at him in shock. "What are you…?"

"I'm here to bring you to the Haven. Remember when we talked before? It's flourishing better than we imagined." He smiled. "It's a safe place for us." He extended his hand. "Of course, if you don't want to come I won't force you Rena, but if you're interested—"

"I am." Rena answered, taking his hand. Shadows swirled around them and soon the young mutant found herself in a large room carved out of stone.

"Welcome to the Haven."

* * *

**Weird, did I end Zendi's chapter like this? I think I did :D**

**Anyways thanks again to AvengedVeralin, I love Rena so much I hope I did her justice. If not, let me know. This is a work in progress after all!**

**So not sure who to do next... might do a little double chapter update with Cloak and Sionnach's histories. (I know for those who've read D-Factor you've already seen Sionnach's history, but I'll probably adjust it a little and put it in here. This is a collection of ALL of their pasts, so he's included)**

**Taking suggestions though on who next, that's just my back-up plan!**


	4. Interlude 1

**Disclaimer: X-Men: Marvel. OCs: various authors**

**Author's note: **Aw look, a tiny interlude!

This is one of those in-between chapters that just kind of transitions the story into the next background stories. Yeah so remember how I said I was going to do Cloak and Kitsune? Yeah, that didn't happen. I got major writer's block trying to do Cloak's story so I gave up! And tada! Portal instead.

Oh and WHAM! Triple update. I was in the mood for a multiple update after the stuff I pulled in D-Factor. It makes me move faster so I can get back to my main story. (I counted out the chapters I have left, it could take me a month to finish this here, _or_ I could just write really fast. And since the multiple update I'm just gonna ask for reviews on Portal's and Kitsune's. Let me know how I did!)

**Enjoy. Read. Review on the other two.**

* * *

"Wow, I have newfound respect for both of you." Leo said, bowing his head to Rena and Zendi. "Zen I'm so sorry your family was like that."

The Italian shrugged. "Yeah well, I have a new family now. So, who's next?" She asked gleefully.

"I volunteer Portal." Sionnach said, smirking at the girl with purple streaks in her hair.

"You would." Portal grumbled. "Why you so interested Foxy?"

Sionnach shrugged. "You go, I go."

The boy next to him, Enrique, raised his eyebrows. "You are volunteering… everything?"

A shadow fell over Sionnach's face. "That was the deal, right? Everything. If we don't know each other then we can't trust each other."

"Even—?"

"Even."

A small silence fell over the group. The Leo spoke up. "Okay, so Portal then Sionnach's gonna go? Then can I ask a question you to answer Portal?"

"I… guess?" The girl responded confused.

"What's your deal with Pathos?"

Portal's eyes flashed with pure hatred. "Where'd you hear that?" She growled.

Leo held up his hands. "It's called observation."

Portal still glared at him. She clenched her fists and gritted her teeth. She'd have to be careful. With her emotions in full swing she tended to open portals with just the flare of her hands.

Pathos was a younger mutant at the Haven who had been on Jaller's team. An empathic mutant that could influence people through emotions. He was the one you never wanted to make angry, because he could, and would get even.

Sionnach cleared his throat. "I … uh… don't think Portal wants to share that."

"I thought we were sharing everything!" Leo argued.

The fox-mutant narrowed his eyes. "She shouldn't have to share this one. It's still affecting her."

Clay had remained silent through this, but it was strange. Since when had Sionnach defended Portal? The two fought like cats and dogs daily, and regrettably sometimes into the night. Clay knew why Portal didn't want to talk about it, but then again she knew pretty much everything about her squad. That was her job.

"You really want to know Leo?" Portal shouted. "Pathos—"

"Made her fall for Enrique." Sionnach finished. There was actually sympathy in his voice, oddly uncharacteristic. The whole group was confused.

"How's you know that Sionnach?" Clay asked.

The boy shrugged and gave a non-answer. "Who wouldn't want to fall for this guy here?"

Now it was Cloak's turn to blush. "Aw man."

Leo looked around. There was probably the oddest group dynamic he'd ever seen. But that was an explanation for another time.

Portal rolled her eyes, but her expression was sad. "Why don't I start before those two get all gay on us. The thing that started it all wasn't an attack, or a death, or something extreme. It was my parents…"

* * *

**Now I know I left all of those reading D-Factor on a horrible terrible cliff hanger, but bear with me, please? Everything's under control. Really, it... is. :D**


	5. Plight of Portal

**Disclaimer: OCs in this are mine.**

**Author's note: **Manhattan is a popular place.

Watch the names in this one. Spidey fans?

**Enjoy. Read. Review**

* * *

**Plight of Portal**

_Party in 10. My place. Wanna join in?_

A girl lounged on the couch in a rather large apartment and read the messed. She sat up and ran a hand through her wavy hair. There were a few purple streaks in her dark brown hair. She appeared to be fifteen, but she was younger than she looked. She was about thirteen.

The girl sat back and listened to the voices down the hall. Her parents were at it again, going back to the same old argument. The girl's lips moved in unison with the same old repeated words.

"Why don't you get off your ass and get a damn job?"

"You don't think I've tried that?"

"Well you ain't trying hard!"

"Same old excuse, blame me!"

The teen sighed. They were always too busy with each other to even notice her. Not even dying part of her hair purple caught any of their attention.

She texted back.

_Yeah Dan, I could really use it. Headin out now._

She sprang up off the couch. Pausing, she listened to the argument just to make sure it wouldn't be ending soon. It wouldn't, they were still going strong.

_Of course they are. Not like they ever stop. Not even for me…_

The girl swiped at her eyes and grabbed her black jacket off the other side of the couch. She walked out the door after grabbing a set of keys.

Even after she closed the door the shouting was still audible.

She jogged down the steps and exited the building. She lived in one of those typical apartments in New York City, Manhattan to be exact. A couple of kids were playing on the stone steps that led down to the sidewalk.

One ran up and gave her a hug. "Portia! Did you bring us candy again?"

The girl, evidently Portia, laughed. "Sorry kiddo, I'm just heading out."

The kid smirked. "Dan's party?"

Portia sat on the step next to the little kid. "Now how do you know that?"

Another kid piped up. "It's hot news! Everyone knows already!"

The girl sighed. That's the hard part about living in a well-connected area. Everyone knows everyone's business. "Yeah I'm heading out there. If my parents bother to ask—" she grumbled darkly.

"We'll tell 'em." The kid replied. He gave Portia another hug and then ran back to the group of kids.

The girl stood, trying not to laugh. The kids were way too mature for their own good. There was a _bang_ from a window above and what looked like an alarm clock flew out and committed suicide, landing in the middle of the street and breaking into tiny pieces. She knew exactly whose clock that was.

_My parents…_

* * *

"_Now don't try to say, 'Gee Portal, that's awful that your parents blah blah blah.' If you try, I will kill you. Let's make it short, living in a toxic household got to me, okay?" Portal interrupted her own story._

"_Wait, so how old were you?" Tyler asked. He knew, however briefly, how a toxic household went._

"_Thirteen, but I looked older. Dan was a friend of mine who was two years older. He threw a lot of parties and I was invited to most, even though I was younger than his other high school friends."_

"_So this would be…" Rena began tentatively._

"_The reason why I had so many issues when I first got here." Portal nodded._

"_Wait, what?" Leo asked._

_The girl looked at him. "Alcohol is an awful thing my friend."_

* * *

The party was in full swing soon enough. It was about an hour and a half in already when Portia took a break from dancing and goofing around with some of the others to sit and relax on the couch.

Dan's father was president of some big company, so he was gone, a lot. Not only that, but their apartment was huge. It covered the entire top floor of the building and had a wicked view of the city. It was the perfect spot to hold a party. Nearly every student from Midtown High was there.

Plus Portia, she attended the middle school. But Dan didn't care she was an eighth grader, he invited her all the time. Besides, she looked old enough to be one of the high schoolers milling around.

Portia leaned back on the couch in one room. The lights were dim but there were strobe and crazy colored lights placed around everywhere and music blasted. The words were basically incomprehensible, but the beat was strong and heavy. The girl felt a little claustrophobic, there were _a lot_ of people in that apartment.

"Hey Portia!" A guy called.

She looked up, it was Dan. The teen had light blonde hair, tanned skin, and definitely sported that 'movie star' look. The kid may have been rich, but he wasn't one to brag about it. He figured the parties were a sort of, public duty to put on.

Dan sat next to the girl on the couch. "Let's see Osborn put on a party like this!"

She chuckled. "That boy will bypass you in a heartbeat."

Dan shrugged and handed her a cup. She looked at him perplexed. He nudged her with his elbow. "Relax, it's not strong. Your parents will never know."

"Actually… maybe that's what I need." She growled, downing the contents.

The boy had a concerned look on his face. "They're at it again?"

"Aren't they always? I just wish they would look past each other sometimes…"

Dan put his arm around the girl. "You tried talking to them?"

"Like I can ever get a word in!" The girl laughed scornfully. A kid was walking around nearby handing out more cups, Portia took one to Dan's displeasure.

"Portia, I don't think you should—"

"Shut up."

Dan pulled a face and took the cup away from her. "I'm serious. I'm just trying to help you here."

"You wanna help, help me get their attention!" Portia shouted. Why couldn't her parents care like that?

"Ey, man! Who invited Puny Parker?" A voice called from somewhere else. There was the sound of something hitting the wall.

Dan groaned. "Stay right here, _and don't drink __**anything!**_" He stood and ran off somewhere.

Portia was furious. It was _his_ fault anyways. His party, his drinks. How could he expect her not to partake?

_Because he's your friend. _A tiny voice in her head said. She assumed it was her common sense. _He cares about you._

She chose to ignore it.

* * *

"Come on…" Dan grumbled.

The party had gotten broken up by some invading parents, and everyone was sent home. Portia left as well, but…

"I can't believe we're doing this." Dan grumbled some more. He had his arm under Portia's ribs. She was stumbling around mindlessly. Somehow she had found her way to the docks alongside the opposing side of the Hudson River. That was nowhere near her home. They were making their way across the bridge slowly.

"Man, I'm so stupid." Portia muttered, her words slurred horribly.

"Yeah, yeah you are." Dan replied, nearly dragging her along. He had followed after her when everyone left. The scent of alcohol had been far too prevalent for his taste.

"Thank you…" She whispered, leaning on him.

"Woah now, ya gotta stand up straight." Dan urged, but Portia slipped from his hold and fell against the railing on the bridge and slumped against it. She groaned. "I'm calling for help. Give me your phone. I think you're gonna get the attention you want from your parents."

Portia fished through her pockets wearily and handed over her cell phone. "Sp-spleed dial… one." She muttered.

The boy held the phone to his ear while keeping a worried eye on Portia. He was busy explaining what happened over the phone when Portia's blurred mind heard footsteps.

She glanced up, and though her vision was blurry saw a group of five men walking toward them. "Dan… Dan!" She cried.

He whipped around. "I—" He swore. "Call the police Mr. Manderson. _Now._" The phone clicked off.

"Well what do we have here?" The lead man asked. They were quite obviously thugs, all wore thick jackets and stocking caps. "Two puppies out of the pound?" The men behind him chuckled.

Portia stood woozily. She blinked repeatedly, trying to free up her vision, but she saw the man smile wider.

"And one's a little… over her head. Well, ain't she a pretty one."

Dan placed himself in front of the girl. "Back off."

The lead man turned back. "Such confidence. He's a real New Yorker." He looked at the teenagers. "A shame he's gettin' in our way."

"W-what do you want?" Portia asked. Her tongue felt thick in her mouth.

"A little more from you, but from him his wallet." The thug growled. He pulled a gun out of his waistline. "Now."

Dan tossed his wallet onto the street in front of him. "Take it. But if you try to touch her, I swear—"

"What, kid?" The man asked. One of the others scurried forward and grabbed the wallet. He grinned as he saw the contents.

"We're set for a while!" He whispered to the others.

"Whatcha gonna do? You're just a kid!" The man teased. He waved his gun at Dan. "Step aside. I'll be done quick."

"Over my dead body." Dan growled.

"_That_ can be arranged." The man said darkly, pointing the gun at Dan's chest.

Portia made sense of the situation then. They were going to kill Dan. No, she wouldn't let that happen. She wouldn't let the only person to ever care about her die!

"NO!" Portia screamed, throwing her arm out. The action seemed weird at the time, but it was her body's natural reaction.

The man began to laugh, but then a dark purple swirl grew under his and his men's feet. They cried out in alarm and fell through the ground.

"How did—?" Dan began.

Suddenly Portia cried out. A pain inside of her chest exploded, like something was trying to get out. She fell to her knee, one arm clutching the railing. She slashed the other through the air.

In the open space next to the bridge another swirl of energy appeared. Five dark shapes fell from it, screaming, into the water below.

"Nasty…" The boy muttered, looking over the edge.

Portia collapsed the rest of the way onto the cement and laughed. "W-wouldn't l-l-like to be t-th-them going f-f-for a s-swim!"

Dan knelt beside her. "God, don't lose it now. Stay with me."

Black dots swam in front of her vision but she forced herself into consciousness. "D-don't t-t-t-tell my p-parents. I-I have no id-idea what the h-hell happened, but t-t-th-th—"

"Shhh." Dan shushed, maneuvering her form so she leaned her head against his shoulder as he sat next to her.

A car pulled up not too long after. Dan helped her into the car and rode along to her house. As her parents half-scolded, half-thank-God-you're-alived her he and her dad carried her into her bedroom.

It was one of the only times Dan had ever seen her happy with her parents.

He crashed on the couch in their general living space. He wasn't risking going back out when it was so late, and he wasn't going to leave Portia after the hell of a night she had.

* * *

"_So you and Dan?" Leo started._

_Portal rolled her eyes, but her expression got sad and far off. "Shut it."_

"_But how did—"_

"_How did I get to the Haven? Did you think just because I got drunk my parents started paying more attention to me? They did for a few days, but __**wham**__, right back to normal. I… I ran a week later…"_

* * *

"Come on, don't do this Portia!"

Portia ignored Dan, grabbing her backpack off the table. She was in his apartment's kitchen. It was early morning, and again his father was gone. Pale gray light filtered in through the window, making his pale hair look gray.

Her face was stony as she responded. "I was only here to tell you I'm leaving. There's nothing you can do to change my mind."

Dan stood from his chair and walked around the table so he was right in front of her. The boy was several inches taller, but he seemed small when he spoke. He took her hand. "Please, stay here, for me…"

She looked down, tears starting to form in her eyes. "I-I can't Dan. I'm done. I need to find out some things. Like what happened on the bridge—"

"Which was awesome by the way."

She glared in his pale green eyes. "The men were found washed up on the docks, **dead**! How can you say that's awesome?"

"They died because they couldn't swim, Portia. They were going to- going to—"

"Going to what?" Portia asked roughly. Her memory of that night was fuzzy, she couldn't remember at all what they'd said.

Dan met her eyes with fury behind them. "They were going to _rape_ you. What they got, was what they deserved!"

Portia's eyes softened. "And… you were going to… oh God…"

"Please, Portia…" Dan said softly. He pressed his lips up against hers. After a long moment she pulled away.

Tears ran down both their faces. She swiped at them furiously, but new ones kept replenishing them. "I-I have to go." Her voice cracked. She turned and began walking toward the door.

Dan followed. "You'll always have a place to stay here Portia! Please, be careful… I don't know what would happen if I lost you for good."

She turned as she opened his front door to leave. He ran up to her and kissed her again. She tore herself away with great difficulty and hugged him.

"Good-bye Dan."

* * *

"_And then you came to the Haven."_

"_Damn it, Leo! If you don't shut up I will make you!" Clay growled at the feline mutant._

_He grasped his chest and threw a hand across his forehead. "Spare me pretty one!"_

_She made a move toward the knife inside her boot. Zendi stayed her hand. "Come on, flirt nicely!"_

"_I will kill you."_

"_Uhh, guys? The story." Xander prodded._

"_Oh this was more entertaining than the last part of my story, Xander." Portal assured. "Let's face it, we were all confronted by a mysterious girl would somehow knew our life story."_

_Cloak coughed politely. "But you were not one of them."_

"_Dang it, Ricky! Really, now I have to tell it!"_

* * *

Living on your own sucked. Especially when you're a city kid in a forest.

Portia Manderson grumbled to herself as she kicked foliage aside. She was dirty, sweaty, and exhausted. The sun glittered down through the leaves overhead.

After several hitch-hiking experiences, a run in with a bear, and an awful run-around with police looking for her, she had ended up… somewhere.

Honestly she had no clue where she was, how she got there (well no, she knew _exactly_ how she got there, and it was an adventure), or how she was going to live to see another day. She ran out of her food supply days ago, and her stomach growled like it was a bear itself. All she had been able to secure were a few bottles of liquor, but she wasn't too thrilled about having to drink that again.

"Ohhhh…" She moaned, clutching her stomach.

"Hungry?"

"BAAAHHH!" Portia whirled around and stumbled back like an idiot. With all the flailing of her arms she caused a portal to open under a tree. The plant slipped through and crashed from the sky nearby into the ground. She ended her panic with her back up against a tree.

Another teenager stood in front of her with snow-white hair that spiked up in the back and nearly fell into his eyes in the front. His eyes were deep blue, like little pools of water. Down the side of his head was a black zig-zag stretching from his neck to his bangs. He was wearing a brown hooded cloak, gray cargo pants, and a black T-shirt. In one hand was a metal Bo staff.

"Who the hell are you?"

The boy smiled. "I am Enrique."

"Enrique. Okay. Well _Enrique_ what the hell do you want?"

"I am offering a place to stay. For you. If you want." He stated simply. His voice was thick with a Spanish accent.

Portia shuffled forward, slowly trusting the new arrival. "Okay. What's the catch?"

"Catch? I do not—"

"Price, what do I have to pay or give up to go there?"

He frowned. "Nothing. It is free. A safe haven, for those like us."

"Us?" Portia snorted. "Confused teenagers in the woods?"

"Surprisingly, yes… that is how most tend to be. But I was saying people with special abilities."

"How did—"

"_El __árbol__._" He stated, pointing to the tree on the ground. "A sad death for a tree."

"So I'm not the only one!" She said with extreme relief.

"Uh, yes! Or no, which is correct?"

"Either I guess." Portia said. Apparently the boy was still trying to grasp English.

"Yes there are others like you. No you are not alone." The boy said. "Are you interested?"

"Are there showers?"

"Yes."

Portia walked up to him. "Then I would be delighted to come with you."

Enrique stuck out his hand, which was covered in a leather glove. She took it and they shook.

"Welcome to the Haven."

* * *

"_And Pathos?" Leo asked._

_Portal glared at him. "That is a story for another time."_

"_But—"_

"_Leave it be Simba." Sionnach growled, smirking at Leo's reaction._

"_Hey! I'd say I'm more of a Mufasa!"_

* * *

**Friendships can be funny. Sionnach and Portia are examples of that.**

**As I was writing this I was thinking to myself: "I am sooo going to bring Dan into D-Factor later."**

**Anyways, Spider-Man fans? Yeah I couldn't help myself. See that new movie? If not check it out sometime. If you were a fan of the last... ones... you'll find this to be much better. Much.**

**TO KITSUNE!**


	6. Creation of Kitsune

**Disclaimer: The X-Men (though only briefly appear) don't belong to me, they're Marvel's. The incredibly difficult to work with mutant known as Sionnach Fae is the creation of the imagination of San child of the wolves. I only say he's difficult to work with if you're Clay Dune.**

**Author's note:** Quick!

So basically this is a rewritten chapter. The original version is in D-Factor, Chapter 14: Kitsune. This one is nearly four thousand words shorter because I cut out a lot of X-Men stuff that just has no purpose here. I didn't feel like adding any _interruptions_ in this chapter, but I will in the next where we look deeper into Sionnach/Kitsune and his fear of water.

* * *

**Creation of Kitsune**

_Phoenix, Arizona._

Despite it being nearly have way through September, the afternoon heat beat down on a teen and three kids at a local playground. A cool breeze swept through the swings and sand, whooshing past the kids.

The teen had tanned skin from being out in the sun all the time. Arizona will do that. He sat on the swing set reading a book. He wore a dark maroon T-shirt and ripped jeans, the heat made little impact to him. Oddly maroon colored hair was tied back in a low 'manly' ponytail to keep it from whipping in his face. Gold tinted eyes glared out in an eerie manner. His body was slim, but muscular. His face structure was angular and intense.

He watched the three kids as they ran about the playground. They appeared to be about ten.

"Hey Sionnach!" One of the boys yelled at the teen. The boy had tan skin like the teen and similar features, but dark brown hair. He pronounced it like See-ion-na-ck (the 'ch' in his name was pronounced like the 'ch' in 'loch'). "Guess who I am!"

The boy ran around the playground and up the slide in a comical manner with his arms spread out.

Sionnach squinted his eyes. "Not funny Caleb. That's not even how you do parkour."

The boy, Caleb, scrunched his nose. "That's not even how you do parkour." He imitated with a nasally sneer. The other two laughed.

The teen snorted and went back to reading.

"I don't even know why Dad has you babysit us!" Caleb grumbled. "You're no more mature than us."

"I'm seventeen. You're ten years old. In no way are you more mature than me." Sionnach muttered angrily as he continued to scan his book.

Caleb made a face at his brother, causing his two friends to laugh.

"Wanna play some baseball with us then?" Caleb asked, tossing a ball up in the air. The other two boys hefted their baseball bats onto their shoulders.

Sionnach grimaced. He wasn't all that great at sports, and his brother knew it. Playing would be humiliating and turning down the offer would also receive teasing.

"No thanks." He said slowly, just barely looking up.

"That's what I thought." His brother sighed. "My brother, the only guy I know who can't play sports."

"Probably 'cuz he throws like a girl." One of his friends jeered.

The teen winced and gulped his anger down.

Caleb looked over at his friends. "You know, he can't swim either."

"Really?"

"Yeah, just freezes up and starts drowning. He could probably drown in his own bath tub." Caleb said in a sad teasing manner.

Sionnach could no longer focus on the words on the page. They swam before him in a red-tinged fury. Caleb was too young to understand his aquaphobia, he couldn't remember when their mother died.

The friends laughed and joined in, jeering mean comments at the older boy on the swings.

"Afraid of water, eh? Hope you don't mind that I have this water bottle then." One mocked, pulling out a plastic bottle. He waved it in the air and approached Sionnach.

"Careful there, he might club you with that book!" Caleb yelled.

Sionnach froze, glancing up from his book. He knew what would happen if Caleb's friend dumped the water on him. He would freeze up and panic.

The friend still approached and Sionnach threw himself out of the swing as the friend swung his arm like he was going to fling the water out at him.

Nothing fell from the bottle.

The kids burst into laughter.

"It was empty dimwit!"

The teen looked up from the ground and saw the truth. The dusty ground was deprived of any sort of moisture. He cursed under his breath and pulled himself up to much teasing.

"Shut up. SHUT UP!" Sionnach yelled, angrily brushing himself off. He took a few angry steps away from the boys. He pushed his rage down and glanced at the three out of the corner of his eye. Each made eye contact with him.

"Go play in traffic." He snarled sarcastically. His eyes glowed a bright gold as he said the words.

Suddenly the three boys turned and ran toward the street. They flung down the bats and ball in their hands and in a sick happiness ran to the street. Sionnach whirled around shocked.

_What the hell are they doing? _He screamed in his head. He ran a bit after them then screamed, "Guys! GET YOUR BUTTS BACK THE SIDEWALK!"

The boys continued to run around in the street. A huge eighteen-wheeler came flying down the street. The boys didn't notice the impending danger.

Sionnach wanted to scream, yell, _anything, _but he couldn't.

The massive truck slammed into the three kids without slowing. No sounds escaped their lips as they died, almost like the pain couldn't be felt.

The teen stood there in complete shock. Anger shook his body, causing it to become numb to a transformation he would later not be able to stand.

His face stretched into a fox muzzle, ears sprouted from the top of his end, maroon fur coated his body, his nails grew into short black claws and his jeans split to make way for three bushy maroon fox tails. Blue flames engulfed his hands, tail, and ears.

He couldn't tear his gold eyes from the scene of his brother and his friends' mutilated bodies on the street. He was screaming in mental pain and anger. Sionnach didn't even realize it until something struck his head. Crumpling he fell to his hands and knees and stared at the ground in new found pain.

He yelped and looked in confusion at his hands. They were furry, and on fire. That just didn't register in his brain. It was physically impossible and he felt no pain.

Another missile was tossed by him, dragging his attention to a crowd around him.

A large group of humans had gathered and held any sort of weapon they could have found; from baseball bats to steel pipes and bricks. He wasn't sure what was going on, but he knew he had to leave, now.

Scrambling to his feet he turned and fled down the street to his house.

Luckily, his father was not home. Sionnach's father was a cruel man when it came to mutants, and Sionnach was now sure he was what he had been taught to despise. In a rush he ran upstairs, slammed and locked his door.

* * *

Sionnach Fae paced nervously in his room. It was plain, but posters were plastered everywhere. Art supplies sat out on a wooden desk. He'd tried drawing and painting, but his nerves wouldn't stop.

He was a dead man.

His farther had drilled him every day on how mutants were the scum of the earth. They poisoned families and blood-lines, creating heart break and discord where ever they went.

They were devil advocates. A tainted splash on the pure mankind.

Sionnach believed all of it. Or at least used to. What could he do when **he **was the very thing he despised?

There was no acceptance from his family. His mother was dead, as was now his brother, and his father would disown him in a mere heartbeat.

The anger had boiled of him and left him feeling empty, weak, and vulnerable. With it had gone his mutant transformation, but some features stayed. There was still a maroon fox tail at his back side, and his nail remained black and hard, though not in points.

He nervously flicked his tongue over the still-shape fangs that lined his mouth. The anger was returning, fueled by his own self-hatred.

Suddenly he heard the front door slam and a man roar out. "SIONNACH!" It was his father returning from work.

A yelp burst from his throat, a sound he never made before today.

Leaden footsteps came up the stairs. His bedroom door flung open with no warning causing Sionnach to flinch. He screwed hi eyes shut.

The man shared many of his features, but his face was purple in rage.

"First you humiliate us with your… _preferences_." He spat. "Then you become a mutant! How much dishonor can one bring to his family?"

"Please, Dad! I d-didn't mean to—!" Sionnach whimpered.

The man shut the door behind him and balled his fists. He approached the teen with malice. "You may have not meant to, but I'll teach you a lesson you won't forget!"

* * *

The story of Sionnach Fae was featured on Phoenix's daily news.

"In a startling report today, a mutant killed three young boys this afternoon. In this video taken by a bystander the mutant displays its fury." An anchor woman said.

The footage played showed a half-man/half-fox mutant with maroon fur screaming in anger and baring his teeth. It was Sionnach, blue flames rolled off his body.

"We asked for your help in identifying this dangerous mutant and you complied. We now go live to our camera crew who is with police as they arrive at the mutant's residence to take it into custody. Police received a tip from the mutant's father whose other son was killed in the attack."

The screen shifted and a bouncy camera jostled with other journalists and policemen. A police officer marched up to the door and banged on it yelling to have the mutant come out.

The door flung open with a visibly furious man and a teenager with bruises covering his face and arms, as well as blood running down his face from a gash in his forehead. Some of his limbs were bent the wrong way, clearly broken.

The man threw the teenager to the police and spoke with an acid tongue. "Take this filth away."

The police complied in a rush.

Sionnach couldn't believe it was happening. _He_ was just what he despised.

* * *

Two police officers threw the bandaged Sionnach into a cell at the small special jailhouse built to contain mutants. At least they'd been civil enough to see to his injuries before tossing him into jail.

The cells were empty, except for his, all contained a cot and sink. A long hallway led back to the office part of the jailhouse.

Sionnach hit the cool concrete hard, and whipped back around to bare his new fangs.

The officers laughed and put a code into the keypad causing the bars to slam shut.

"Ain't going nowhere now mutie." One officer snarled.

Both laughed and turned to walk way, when they both appeared to be hit over the head. With a grunt they fell to the ground.

The air behind them waivered like something was melting out of the air.

There stood Enrique 'Cloak' Oculto. His white hair melded with the bleak walls behind him, but the black streak gave his head recognition.

He wore black pants with silver armor plates on his thighs, light weight black boots with leather soles, a black shirt with a gray triangle angling from his right shoulder to his left side then down to his waist on his right side, and a brown cloak with a hood over it. A metal Bo staff was in his hands and heavy black leather gloves covered his hands.

He looked down worriedly at the two men and knelt. He placed his hand on their necks and checked for a pulse. Finding both of theirs present he stood with a grin plastered on his face. He looked up from his handiwork and smashed his staff into the electronic key pad. With a shower of sparks it died, opening the barred door for Sionnach.

The teen with maroon hair could only stare at this new arrival. He avoided Cloak's eyes, afraid he would do what he had done to Caleb and his friends. He chanced a quick glance at the other teen's dark blue eyes and felt a connection. He was attractive, he couldn't deny that, and his heart beat a little faster as he took in the rest of his appearance.

Then he stopped.

This guy was a mutant, an abomination, a creature of filth, someone who- who was just like Sionnach. He hated it.

Cloak looked down at the teen crumpled on the floor. He was definitely worse for wear. Bruises covered nearly every inch of his body, his arm was bound in two places, and several bloody stretches of gauze were wrapped around his body parts. There was a look of compassion and anger on his handsome face, an odd combination. His anger marred his face.

He stretched out a hand to Sionnach. "Are you just going to sit there? Take my hand."

Wearily Sionnach complied, though he spat out, "You're a mutant."

"_Sí y tú." _ Cloak said, sounding a little confused.

Sionnach narrowed his eyes and continued to look him over. They were about the same height and body build, but the new arrival's face was kind of square and well set.

"Cloak." The Spanish mutant said quickly.

The other frowned. "Sionnach. What kind of name is Cloak?" He asked with disgust. _Mutants and their damned names._

Cloak's face turned stony and he answered quietly. "My true one."

A small gray sphere blinked at his waist. "Our signal to go. Hold on tight and stay quiet." Cloak murmured to Sionnach.

"What do you mean by—" Suddenly a cold chill went through Sionnach's body. His skin tingled with tiny vibrations. Startled, he looked down at himself, but was unable to see anything.

_Invisibility. I've been turned invisible by a mutant I don't even know._

Sionnach had the urge to pitch the contents of his stomach, but held it in feeling greatly disturbed.

Better to ask questions later when they were safely out of there.

Cloak tugged at his hand and guided him down the hall, through the door, which the two officers had left carelessly open.

Silently they glided into the office. Cloak stopped suddenly, almost causing Sionnach to crash into him. Though he couldn't see Cloak, he knew his eyes were focused on the man at the desk.

There was a bald man in a wheel chair who was speaking in calm tones to the officer on the other side of the desk. A man with short brown hair stood behind him. Two others stood nearby, one was short with red spikey hair and the other was tall with brown hair and a weird red visor over his eyes. The two standing a little ways off both wore zipper hoodies and jeans, and the shirt under their hoodies both displayed X's on their chests (one took up his entire chest, while the other's was just inside an oval over his heart).

"I'm here to speak with Sionnach Fae. I would also like to speak to your commanding officer about arranging his release." Xavier said.

_Me? What the hell could he want with me? _Subconsciously the new mutant squeezed the other boy's hand tighter. If he had been visible his face would have been bright red.

The officer behind the desk shook his head. "Nuh-uh. Nobody's allowed to speak with the prisoners."

"I assure you it is of dire importance. Could I speak with who's in charge?"

The officer nodded, much too easily. The man in the wheelchair looked like someone Sionnach recognized from television. He must be the mutant professor in Bayville that started the whole mess. Among the others in the room there was a sense of urgency that hung in the air.

The officer called over his radio and seconds later a graying man walked in.

"Heard you lot wanted to speak with the officer in charge."

The bald man nodded. "Yes, I am Charles Xavier. I teach mutants how to control their powers. I was hoping to speak with the young Sionnach Fae to see if he was interested."

The graying man thought for some moments, the gears visibly churning in his head. The two in the hoodies glanced nervously at each other.

"I guess it couldn't hurt…" He muttered.

"Anything to keep troubled mutants off the streets, right?" The teen with red spikes chuckled.

The older officer looked at him and smiled. "Good point young man. People hate mutants for what they do but are utterly unwilling to help them control their powers." He waved the other officer off. Walking toward the door he continued to speak.

"Compromises have to be made somewhere. You think the attack was accidental Mr. Xavier?"

"Yes, it often happens when their powers first flare up. Would it be possible to release him to us if he agrees?"

The man frowned, then nodded. "I suppose so, but that makes an awful lot of paperwork for me. I—" He halted mid-sentence when he looked down the hall.

Cloak pulled Sionnach toward the entrance in a hurry, no longer worrying about staying quiet.

"Cain, Rogers?" The older officer yelled out. Seeing his men were out cold he grabbed his radio. He barked orders over the device and turned to Xavier.

"Looks like you can't talk to him."

Xavier spun around to face the three others in the room. The maroon-haired teen felt a small prick in his mind.

"Leo! The door!" Xavier shouted.

Without hesitation 'Leo', the teen with red hair, flung himself in front of the door and growled.

Cloak swung his staff at Leo and knocked him aside. He almost apologized, and then stopped. He disabled the cloak he put on himself and Sionnach and ran out the door with the other teen not far behind.

He heard a frustrated roar and fought off a shiver that went down his spine. That _thing_ was going to be following them.

* * *

The two mutants ran down back streets and alleyways trying to avoid their pursuers.

Sionnach was surprised by his rescuer's knowledge of the streets.

"Who are you!" He asked as they began to see a lack of city streets.

"Cloak." He slowed a little so Sionnach could catch up. "I am from a place called the Haven. It is a safe haven of sorts for mutants without a place to go."

"And you broke into jail, just for me?" Sionnach gasped stopping. Their pursuers were nowhere in sight and they were now on a sidewalk that looked like it led to the middle of the desert. Even the houses were nonexistent.

Cloak stopped as well and leaned heavily on his staff. "…Uh, yeah. Our squad leader sent us out especially for you."

Sionnach frowned. It sounded sketchy, and he was pretty sure the mutant misused the word 'especially'.

"How do I know I can trust you? Who's this 'squad leader'?" He asked with a twinge of fury.

"You have another choice of who to trust?" Cloak sighed, running a hand through his white hair. "As for our squad leader—"

"That would be me." Sionnach whirled around to come face-to-face with bright neon green eyes and pale gray skin. She smiled from under her light tan mask. "Sionnach Fae, correct?"

He glared in anger. "What the hell is going on!" He pointed a finger at Clay and poked her in the chest, thudding against her armor. "What kind of sick game are you playing at?"

Clay shrugged. Glancing down at his finger she slapped his hand away. "You need a place to stay and I'm offering one. Take it, or go back to rot in that jail cell."

He continued to glare daggers at her smug face.

She laughed and looked at Cloak. "the others are stalling the X-Men, but Portal is with them. No one can leave 'til they meet us here."

"Won't the X-Men follow?" Cloak asked.

"That's the idea."

* * *

Sionnach was not enjoying watching his rescuers. He was dreadfully bored, and Clay and Cloak were talking in Spanish. Having only taken minimal Spanish, he could only pick out a few words here and there.

Cloak was obviously a native Spanish speaker; Clay clearly wasn't, though she was still quite good. Sometimes she would say something and Cloak would calmly repeat the word, but either correctly, or followed by the word she meant.

Sionnach drew with a stick in the sand when suddenly the conversation behind him grew agitated. He turned around and watched.

Clay was rubbing her forearms, which were covered in bronze guards with an elegant design, and her voice was increasing in volume. It was hard to tell her facial expression, but the mask moved more as she spoke.

The white-haired mutant was calmly countering whatever she said, though he looked hurt and unhappy. Finally some agitation brought through and he shouted a word.

"Nuju!" He flung his hands up and glared despairingly at Clay. "He's one of Jaller's men! **YOU HATE JALLER!** Why would you ever—?"

Clay silenced him with a glance. "I had to tell someone, besides, he _used _to be one of our squad. He's on our side."

"Jaller will get revenge, you just wait." Cloak said quietly, he turned to Sionnach and his expression softened. "Hey, Sionnach, how are you doing?"

"Oh, don't worry about me. Just sitting here… I have no idea what's going on, or who you are, but that's okay." He replied with sarcasm. "Who's Jaller anyways?"

Clay nodded to Cloak and walked off to where there appeared to be a still form on the ground.

"At the Haven there are about two hundred young mutants. Jaller is one. He and Clay… do not get along. He is the current 'elected' leader," Cloak did air quotes for 'elected', "and before him it was Clay."

"I see." Sionnach said. "So she's pissed someone can do her job better."

"No, that is not it." Cloak shook his head. "He stole the position from her unfairly. Jaller also has not been running the Haven in a way Clay agrees with. Food is a little shorter, and his team enforces some rules more harshly than others." He sighed and sat on the ground next to the other teen. "He's kinda homophobic too. Makes my life a bit of Hell."

Sionnach looked shocked at the mutant. Most people didn't just come out and say things like that.

"So you're…?"

"Gay? Jes." Cloak answered without skipping a beat. He'd come to terms with that fact of his life a long time ago and was perfectly comfortable with telling people.

The other teen swallowed and glanced around. He saw Clay helping the still form into a sitting position then up all of the way. The two walked over and Clay wore a worried look under her mask that leaked out into her eyes.

The other next to her was a male with blue eyes and black hair cut close to his head, his skin was a pasty white color and he wore only a black hoodie and pair of jeans.

Clay looked from the new boy to Cloak and Sionnach. "Cloak, you and Whisper need to stay here. He was doing some recon and… well it looks like Portal's been caught up. Cyclops and Spades are running this way, and Turbulence is in the air. **Stay invisible**. Hopefully I can get back quickly with Portal and we can get out of this desert." Her tone was rushed and worried.

Cloak stood and grabbed her shoulders. "Do not do anything stupid Clay, please."

"No promises."

* * *

The three boys stood in the increasing darkness silently. Cloak had made them all invisible, but it hadn't calmed their nerves. Something was going on, and Sionnach was curious as to what it was.

Suddenly two figures burst out into the area they were at. One was a huge lion humanoid with gold colored fur and the other was a tan, sleek girl. The girl back flipped out of the lion's reach, but the lion roared and rushed forward. He managed to grab a hold of her and slam her into the ground with significant force. She didn't get back up.

Cloak whispered what sounded like a Spanish curse. Suddenly he was no longer at their side. Now being invisible wasn't that bad. Not knowing where other invisible people were was awful.

The lion shrank down into the teen from the police station with red spikey hair. He was wearing what looked like black spandex. The X made more sense now, he must have been an X-Man.

More mutants raced toward the open space and stopped when they got there. Leo waved over at the tall teen with the red visor, and a red skinned devil. Another boy flew in next to them and dropped to the ground. He had long blonde hair and pilots goggles, his uniform was black and green.

"So this is Knife?" The blonde asked, pointing to the girl on the ground a short distance away.

"Yes, I tried to scan her mind, but she has an impressive shield." Professor Xavier said. "Luckily for Leo I pick up on patterns pretty well."

There was a faint buzzing sound.

The professor cringed and responded. "Yes Rogue, what is it?"

More buzzing.

Cyclops pressed his communicator button. "Wait, you were attacked too?"

And yet, more buzzing. Sionnach couldn't really make out what it was, but he figured the mutants had some sort of blue tooth devices that they were talking over.

"Take her back to the jet, Rogue." Xavier said calmly. "We'll finish up here and meet you there."

One final buzz and it went silent.

The X-Men glanced around.

A small gray sphere clipped to the downed girl's belt flashed red. Leo's eyes widened and his hand went to his belt.

"What's that?" The man with the visor asked. "Something's flashing on her belt." He bent down to remove it when it looked like he was hit over the head with something. He grunted and slumped over, rubbing his head. "What the—?"

There was a scuffling noise and Knife was dragged across the ground by a pair of invisible hands. The hands stopped and the air shimmered. Cloak appeared with his hood drawn up, standing over her.

"I would not do that." He muttered. Sionnach and Whisper materialized as well.

"Well I could have done with remaining invisible…" Sionnach grumbled quietly.

A purple portal swirled into existence behind him and out stepped four more teenagers. Sionnach only recognized Clay, but there was a girl with wavy hair, and a snake man carrying a very small girl.

Clay looked at Cloak, then to Knife on the ground. Fury boiled off of her in waves.

"That's it!" She roared. She started toward the X-Men, but Cloak grabbed her arm.

Leo looked at the group of mutants. He gasped as he looked at the snake humanoid.

"Mr. Severus?"

The snake man looked at the spikey-haired teen. "What… Leo? Why are you…?"

Xavier interrupted. "Who are you?"

Clay grunted and shook Cloak off. "Who we are is no matter to you, not yet. Portal, we're leaving."

The girl with purple streaks in her hair nodded and stretched her arms out. Another portal appeared, this one obviously larger and stronger.

"Sionnach!" Xavier called. The teen turned and faced the professor. "We came to offer you somewhere to stay, a place for mutants to gain control."

"Funny, so did they." Sionnach laughed. He glanced at Cloak then back to the professor. "Thanks for the offer, but I'm going wherever he does."

He and Cloak backed out into the portal, followed by Whisper who dragged Knife through.

The view on the other side was incredible. A huge stone cavern carved into an arena.

Like most people who first stepped into the Haven his only words were:

"Woah."

* * *

"And this, is your room." Clay said, gesturing to a door.

She was giving Sionnach a quick tour of the squad's floor.

The Haven was carved out of brown stone. The whole thing was like a cavern with a building inscribed inside. It was huge, and had at least twenty floors, the bottom one was a huge arena.

The metal door opened without a squeak and Sionnach examined his new home. The stone floor was ground smooth as were the walls. A carved out closet was in the corner, a bed in the center against the wall, and a dresser sat opposite it. There was another set of doors, though these had glass windows on the far wall. He looked back at Clay. She had taken off her mask and her face was much happier. Both Ash (the small girl the snake man had been carrying) and Knife had awoken, and were no worse for wear.

She smiled. "Go ahead, check out the view."

Sionnach walked toward the doors and opened them. A small rock ledge with a metal gate jutted out from the smooth rock face. He'd asked where the Haven was and all he'd gotten was a "somewhere in North Dakota". Thinking about where Arizona was he was surprised it had just been one short five second inter-dimensional jump away.

The sun had long since gone down. The night sky was a dark navy with no light pollution to be found. The stars studded like jewels in the sky.

He smiled. Somehow Clay had known he loved the stars. She walked up next to him and looked out into the night.

"Welcome to the Haven."

* * *

**Less typos than the original as well! Woo!**

**So next I'll try Enrique/Cloak again, then probably Xander/Whisper (this I say after I finish Kitsune 2.0 chapter). I believe I have 6 more origins chapters and unknown amount of in-between chapters (anyone want to correct me?). Again if you haven't checked out D-Factor you'd probably like it if you've enjoyed things here so far.**

**Anyone notice my pattern in ending the chapters?**

**~Keep writing strong. Stormplains.**


	7. Fears of Fighters

**Disclaimer: Sionnach Fae/Kitsune's past was created entirely by San child of the wolves. As usual I only give it life.**

**Author's note: **Ack, tiny!

Hmm, maybe I should have put this with the other Kitsune chapter, but I felt it was different enough to give its own space. Sorry for the smallness.

**Read. Enjoy. Review**

* * *

**Fears of Fighters**

"_You sure you want to keep going, Shy?" Cloak asked, using Sionnach's closely guarded nickname._

_He nodded, taking a deep breath._

"_Wait a sec, there's more?" Leo asked, arching an eyebrow. He was about to say more when Clay placed a hand over his mouth. He glanced irritated at the gray-skinned girl._

"_Please, before he asks something else!" She groaned. Leo was way to curious for her current liking._

_Zendi laughed at her friend and Clay pulled a face._

_Kitsune smirked, of all weirdness that they'd been through, __**this**__ was the part he enjoyed to watch._

"_Alright, well this is the story about why I have the fear of water… it's, it's a little hard for me… but—"_

"_I will help you." Cloak said softly, holding his boyfriend's hand._

"_Things were always pretty good in my family… until we went on vacation when I was seven and my b-brother…" He sucked in a deep breath, "He was only one. We went to a snow resort…"_

* * *

Two bundled up figures made their way through the ice and snow to a frozen lake. One appeared to be a little boy, obviously Sionnach Fae, he was wrapped up in a maroon winter jacket and a black scarf was wrapped around his face. A stocking cap was pulled low over his ears.

The boy walked alongside a woman, his mother. The woman was wearing a similarly colored jacket and had two pairs of ice skates draped over her shoulder.

"Come on Sionnach, the lake is right here!" The woman called back sweetly. There was a ton of snow on the ground, to the pleasure of the skiers, snowboarders, and the little boy. He stopped making a hasty snowman and ran after his mother.

"Okay." He jogged up behind the woman. Like her son she had angular features and maroon colored hair. She handed a pair of ice skates to him.

They both strapped on their skates and began skating on the ice.

Sionnach was skating in a circle when he heard a slight _crack._ He looked down to see cracks forming in the ice.

"Mom!" He cried out, skating toward her.

The woman turned just in time to see the ice break from under her son's feet. She cried out in alarm and skated over to the hole.

Sionnach flailed his arms as he sunk. The water was intensely cold, so cold it froze him straight through to the bone. He was okay for the first few seconds, but as the water soaked into his clothing he couldn't shake the cold. It was like a constant artic wind cutting through him. The cold took over his body and he could no longer move his limbs, he could barely breathe. He _definitely_ couldn't breathe when his head went under the water. The chilling liquid entered his lungs.

He thought he'd never see the surface again.

Suddenly arms wrapped around him and dragged him to the surface. He coughed and sputtered as he was tossed up onto the ice. He rolled to look at the hole in the ice.

His mother was struggling to pull herself up. In a panic Sionnach extended his arms and tried to help her. She swatted his arms away and clawed at the ice.

"N-no honey, I-I'll pull you d-down too." She was able to hold herself there for a few seconds to tell him one last thing. "I love you, Sionnach."

"No, mom!" Sionnach screamed, his frozen throat making his voice hoarse.

She slipped under the water with a shaky gasp.

Sionnach could only watch as she drowned. The image was permanently seared into his memory.

* * *

"_Dios mio**…" Leo muttered. For once with all the stories he was speechless._

_So was everyone else. Most of the mutants there had lost a parent. There was little they could say or do to comfort something so intense._

_Benj and Tyler exchanged glances. They had both witnessed the death of their parents firsthand. It was the reason why Benj rarely drove, the reason why Tyler had risked so much in the burning warehouse. _(For those **not** tuning into D-Factor: Benj's parents were killed in a car crash, Tyler and Leo's were killed in an arson attack.) _The experience of that greatly shaped their lives, whether they would acknowledge it or not._

_Cloak squeezed Sionnach's hand slightly. The fox mutant sighed and finished his narrative._

"_About forty-five minutes after she went under a group of skaters found me frozen to the bone and rushed me back to the lodge. They tried to help my mom… but it was too late. My father was never the same again. It crushed him. He drilled my brother and I on hating those who were different, mutants. I don't know how he knew, but he drilled us on despising them-us. I had to grow up fast. I never got time to face my fear. Th-that's why I can't have anything to do with water." He looked at their leader, Clay. "I thank you for realizing this, for once not pushing me beyond what I am capable of."_

_Clay nodded, her green eyes flashing. "I'm not that big of a-" she looked at their youngest member, Nico, and coughed, "-uh well I know what you can and cannot do. I will push you all to your limits to expand them, but I know what will break you. I know the limitations."_

"_Yeah, and that's scary." Leo muttered, only to receive an elbow to the ribs._

"_I wouldn't say __**scary**__…" Zendi said grinning. "It's good. Otherwise we would've all died a long time ago."_

_Benj groaned and sat back in his chair. "Which I guess is all a part of being in the Haven. Almost dying, but not."_

* * *

**So yeah, could've gone with the last chapter, but I like having it separate. It's such a different tone for Sionnach that I thought it would be okay to have separate.**

**Next will be Cloak/Enrique. I'm gonna make myself write it and push past my writer's block. (It could take a little while because aside from writer's block with it I also was smart enough to involve myself in a situation between two friends. *Facepalm*. I love them both to death but being both their secret-keepers is awful. But that's just who I am. I'm a Clay who's in everyone's business.)**

****Dios mio is Spanish for 'my God'. My Spanish teacher said it all the time.**

**Until next time...**

**~Keep writing strong.**


	8. Cloak's Nightmares Realized

**Disclaimer: Sadly, no X-Men characters here. Nico Wolfe makes a tiny appearance (thanks San child of the wolves), but other than that everything is my imagination.**

**Author's note: **Brilliant idea.

So you know how sometimes you make a character with no actual background and stick him in your story? Yeah, that was Enrique Oculto/Cloak. He didn't actually have any sort of background until yesterday. I was kinda inspired by Mojo (blehk, evil blob in the comics) and his mutant fighting for some of Cloak's past, but I also was inspired by The Warrior Heir for similar reasons. Sadly, no comic book baddies, I didn't want to have to do research. Hope you like it.

(I realized while writing this Enrique's father's name: Helio, would not be pronounced the way I wanted in Spanish. It would end up being "Ey-leo", which isn't a real name, but I decided to ignore it. It's a cool name.)

**Enjoy. Read. Review.**

* * *

**Cloak's Nightmares Realized**

"Helio Oculto!"

A man with snow-white hair turned. He was only in his early twenties and built like a soccer player. He wore a yellow jersey, black athletic shorts, and soccer cleats. Of course, it wasn't soccer, it was fútbol.

Helio faced the person calling his name, to find it was a reporter. He flashed a brilliant smile and walked toward them.

"Ah, friends. I was wondering when you would find me!" He answered in flawless Spanish. He continued to smile as he approached.

The reporter couldn't help but smile either. "Mind answering a few questions?"

"Not at all!" Helio said cheerfully.

They were standing on an indoor practice field, there weren't many others there, a few other players dressed similarly to the man, and several family members.

"How is the season going for the Dragons?" The reporter asked, the camera rolling.

"It's okay. We are trying very hard, but so are our opponents!" He laughed. "But as they say 'practice makes perfect'."

"May I ask some personal questions?"

"Of course, I have nothing to hide from my fans!" Helio responded.

"How is your son?"

Helio smiled. "Why don't you ask him yourself?" He turned back to the field. "ENRIQUE! _¡Viene aquí!"_

A little boy not much older than five came running across the huge field, getting laughs from some of the players as they cheered him on. Like the man the boy had white hair, but there was a black zig-zag on the left side of his head that etched its way from his bangs to his neck. The boy ran like crazy, but wasn't having much success in terms of speed.

Finally he reached his father, who scooped him up in his arms and placed him on his shoulders.

"Enrique, the nice man wants to know how you're doing."

The boy, Enrique, scrunched his face at the camera. "Reporters. Bah! I am KING OF THE WORLD!" He shouted, throwing his arms wide.

Helio chuckled and swung the boy off his shoulders, holding him upside-down by his ankles. Enrique didn't struggle but instead looked calmly around like he was enjoying the new perspective.

The reporter laughed as well. "You are a lucky man. Your son is adorable."

"Yes, yes he is." Helio said with immense pride.

"Is he following in his father's footsteps?"

The man smiled, swinging his son around. "He is only five, but yes… he looks like he has his father's talent with a fútbol." He set Enrique down softly and whispered in his ear.

Enrique looked up gleefully at the camera. "Thank you for your questions. My father must play soccer now. Any other questions can be answered by me."

The reporter laughed. "Thank you Helio." He knelt next to the kid. "And thank you Enrique. I hope I get to interview you again someday soon."

"Just wait, you will." Enrique said with such seriousness the reporter was taken aback.

* * *

"_Your dad—"_

"_Was Helio Oculto, the soccer player, yes." Enrique answered before the question could even be finished._

"_Well no wonder you made the soccer team…" Leo laughed._

"_Wait, was? Isn't he still alive?" Nico piped up._

_Enrique looked down at his feet. "Yes… but I have not seen him in so long… he probably thinks I am dead… It is… hard… to be here when you do not know how your family is doing." He closed his eyes and sighed. "I was young when I came here. I… I believed leaving my family would be easy. Now I regret what I have missed with them. They never got to know me for who I am."_

"_We'll find them, Cloak." Clay said softly. "It's time we let families know that their children are okay."_

_He nodded, but didn't respond. After a few long seconds he went on. "So my powers. That was an interesting night…"_

* * *

_Seven years later…_

"AHHHHH!" Enrique yelled, sitting bolt upright in his bed. He was now twelve, his body beginning to grow muscle and his voice was starting to change. The start of puberty often kick-starts mutant's powers.

He rubbed his head. The dream wasn't… truly frightening, but the idea of it scared him.

His parents burst through his door, Helio was wielding cleats, and his mother simply walked in behind him. Enrique's mother had long black hair and keen features. Both were in their pajamas, making Helio's intimidating stance completely worthless.

"What, where are you?" Helio asked half-asleep.

"Enrique?" His mother called out, looking around.

The boy was puzzled. He was sitting _right there_. But both his parents were looking around like they couldn't see him. Curious, he looked down at his hands and yelled out again. His hands weren't there. _He_ wasn't there. He reached his arm out and felt his toes.

_Okay, so they're there, they're just not… there._ He thought.

"Enrique, wh-where are you?"

Enrique shook his head, still trying to grasp the concept. "I am here." He stated. His parents looked at him but it was still obvious they couldn't see him. "I think… I am invisible."

Helio reached out cautiously, and grabbed Enrique's shoulder. He gasped.

Suddenly the air around Enrique shimmered and he appeared. He looked down at his hands confused. _What had just happened?_

Closing his eyes he tried to turn invisible on command. It worked, as far as he could tell at least because his parents started freaking out again. Continuing to concentrate he willed himself to be visible, and his parents calmed down a little.

"W-what's happening to me?" Enrique asked. He was freaked out. "What am I?"

"I-I don't know…" His father muttered. He glanced at his wife, who looked just as shocked. "Was that why you screamed?"

Enrique groaned and fell back on his bed. "No."

"Well, then why—"

"I had a dream."

His mother sat at the foot of his bed. "A nightmare?"

The boy scrunched his eyes shut. He was trying his best not to make his voice shake. "No, not a nightmare." His parents waited for him to explain farther. "I-I was with a guy. Okay? It freaked me out."

His father blinked, clearly not understanding, but his mother placed a hand on his ankle. "When you say you were with a guy, what exactly—"

Enrique cut her off, sitting straight up. "I was kissing him, mom!" His tone was close to being angry, something that wasn't in his character. "And worse yet I liked it! The idea… I cannot be gay, mom! I will never have a friend again if I am!"

"Enrique, calm down—"

"Calm down? **Calm down**?" Enrique laughed sourly. "Everything I am was just thrown into question. First I have a dream about being with a guy when I am supposed to feel that way about girls. Then I like it, it feels natural, it made me happy. And then lastly I find out I can turn invisible! Yes, yes, let us calm down."

Helio stood up straighter. "We will continue this in the morning."

"Helio, he needs us _now._" The woman urged.

"No, he needs to answer some questions for himself. Then he can talk to us."

Enrique roared with anger and actually flung his pillow at his father. "DAD I NEED YOU NOW! This is not just something you can hope goes away!" His voice lowered. "I need to know you will love me no matter what."

Helio couldn't answer, but stood there gaping at his son.

The boy put his head on his knees and flopped over onto his side, curling up into a ball. "Thanks Dad, your silence speaks volumes."

* * *

"_No I will not answer any questions at this time." Enrique grumbled as Leo opened his mouth._

_Leo shut his mouth quickly and looked up at the ceiling._

"_So you are all probably wondering how I got to the States then. Well it involved a telepath who convinced me that sneaking onto a cargo ship was a good idea."_

* * *

Enrique pulled the hood of his sweatshirt farther over his head. He was trying to not draw attention to himself, and his white hair normally did it. A lot of people recognized him as the great Helio Oculto's son. It got annoying when he was just trying to go outside.

The air was thick with fog and sent a chill down Enrique's spine. He crept through the thick air toward the café where he was meeting a few friends. Anything to get him out of his house for a little while. Things were just too tense at home for his liking.

He turned his head slightly and saw a few suspicious characters on the street corner. Not wanting to have to even deal with them he turned invisible and snuck by them. At least that was something cool, being able to turn invisible. He sighed as he walked past the men and rounded the corner. As he walked by a side alley he had the sudden urge to stop. Nearly against his will he did, turning visible at the same moment.

"Well, well, what do we have here?" A voice echoed from the alley.

Enrique frowned. The man was speaking English, and he only had a little experience with the language.

"A mutant! By luck!" The man emerged from the alley and dragged Enrique back. The boy whirled around ready to defend himself, but the man placed a hand on his forehead and he froze.

With only his eyes still being able to move he watched silently. The man wasn't really a man, but a form made of the wisps of fog. Eyes peered out from the smoky-looking man, but little else was noticeable about him.

The man smirked, teeth appearing on his smoky face. "My associates will be pleased. A mutant like this! By luck!" The shape moved around the frozen boy. "An unresisting mind… easily coerced this one…" He mused. He touched Enrique's shoulder and the boy stumbled forward into the wall in front of him.

"What… what you want?" Enrique muttered, trying to pick words in English out. He could only recognize a few words, but from this man's voice he could tell he was pleased about something.

"Ah, yes. I suppose you cannot understand me. I'll try to make this simple." The man said, walking over and dragging Enrique up off the ground. As much as Enrique wanted to squirm away he could not. The man pointed a half-formed hand at his chest. "I am Grey." He pointed at Enrique, placing his finger on the boy's chest. "And you are going to do what I say."

Enrique resisted the urge to cry out as something picked at the back of his brain. Feeling extremely violated he tried to shrink back, but the man placed his forefinger and thumb on his forehead.

Suddenly everything went black.

* * *

Images swam in front of Enrique's vision as he began to come to. He tried to sit up but found he could not. It was hot and stuffy where he was, a dim light swung overhead, and he recognized the texture of canvas cloth underneath him. He felt the swaying under him and realized he was on a ship. He blinked, trying to bring his vision into clarity and saw a form to his left.

"Grey…" He whispered.

The man stood, his form little more than smoke in the room. He smiled wide, white teeth appearing on his face. "My guest, welcome. In a few moments we shall be in America."

"A-America?" Enrique croaked.

"I believe my powers worked well at enhancing your ability to interpret, no?"

Enrique managed to nod his head. He caught most of what Grey said.

"I hope you like fighting. You'd be surprised how many people want to see underground mutant fights. Of course, very few realize just what we are, what we can do." Grey mused, walking closer to the boy.

The white-haired mutant grimaced. "I do not fight."

Grey laughed. "You will learn."

The ship suddenly lurked forward and there was a groaning noise. Grey smiled and placed a hand on Enrique's forehead, and the boy felt the prick of his powers before he sunk back into blackness.

* * *

When he came to again he knew he was off that ship. He found himself in a cement room on a stone slab. This time he could move when he opened his eyes. After they adjusted to the light he realized he wasn't in a room. He was in a cell.

He sat up, attempting to stand, but he fell onto the ground. His legs weren't quite ready to support his weight. His brown sweatshirt was gone, replaced by an odd fabric long-sleeved black shirt. Gray cargo shorts were on his legs, but he couldn't remember if he was wearing that when he left. He knew he had been gone for a while, but was surprised to find himself smelling halfway decent. With a shiver he realized Grey had probably dictated his every movement since leaving Spain.

Cautiously, he stood and slunk up to the grated door. He peered around, sticking his head between two bars. The room was in a long hallway, and he wasn't the only one there.

"Ey look, the noob's up." A girl's voice sounded.

Enrique looked around. Others were coming to the bars of their cells now, all of varying ages. There was a teenage boy playing with a metal Slinky, after a few seconds Enrique noticed his arms were coiled in a similar fashion as the toy. A girl directly across from him came up to her door, but Enrique looked away quickly. She had what looked like blood down the front of her shirt, on her hands, and a slight bit around her mouth. Every one of the young mutants were grimy and hungry looking, some wore fierce expressions while others had hollow eyes.

"_¿__Dónde__estoy__?"_ Enrique asked. With Grey gone he was unable to understand any of the English words the other mutants were speaking.

The girl across from him rolled her eyes, rubbing her bloodied hands on a pair of light-wash jeans. "Looks like we have another Spaniard. Too bad the last one bit the dust." She glared right at him. "_Soy 'Tick'._ Welcome to Hell, _chico_."

That he recognized. Hell.

He was doomed.

Enrique staggered back and clutched his head. This wasn't happening. It _couldn't_ be happening.

Suddenly the murmurs of the others made clear sense. Enrique rushed back up to the bars.

"Grey…" He whispered, watching the man of smoke walk down the hallway. He was speaking animatedly with another man, this one taller and normal in appearance with tanned skin and black curly hair. He appeared to be of Arab descent.

The other mutants backed away quickly from their bars, hiding in the immediate shadows so they could still hear what the men were saying.

"I don't care Grey! **Invisibility?**What am I supposed to do with that? It is no good for fighting, not nearly showy enough." The new man grumbled.

Grey wrung his hands together, his image wavering. "He will learn to fight."

"He is too young."

Grey stepped in front of the man, stopping him. "But him being young is good. We can shape him how we wish, teach him to fight to entertain."

The Arab man waved his arm, silencing Grey. "No, no. Perhaps he will be good for the breeding program. He has a nice facial structure, and we know the audience loves to root for the attractive ones."

The smoke man shook his head. "No, he will not participate in breeding."

"And why is that?" The Arab man asked, raising an eyebrow.

"The boy is not like the others."

The other man threw his hands up. "You bring me a gay mutant? He's young, it is a phase!"

Grey laughed. "The mind cannot hide its truth. The boy will be a fighter."

"No, thanks to science we don't need his willingness to breed him." The man walked around Grey and continued on, before stopping in front of Enrique's cell. He reached out and took the boy's chin. "Good features and he of course carries the X Gene. He will do. Until he is mature we will train him to fight. He will serve as practice for our real fighters." The man walked on, Grey following behind. "I send you to Spain and you bring back him? BAH! Worthless!"

Enrique backed away from the bars and wrapped his arms around his torso. Their words made his skin crawl.

"Poor kid." A voice from the hall echoed.

"Poor kid? He's one of the lucky ones. He'll live long." The girl, Tick, from across the way said angrily.

"When was Dusk coming by again?" The other voice whispered.

Tick shushed him. "You _want_ to wreck our only hopes of escape? Soon he said."

"Actually…" There was a more mature voice now. It was harmonious but tinged with anger. Enrique was curious about his voice and crept back to the bars of his cell.

A man with purple and black armor on and a sleek purple helmet stood in front of Tick's cell. He seemed to be the source of the voice.

"I am here _now_." The shadows all along the hall vibrated and all the cell doors flung open. He stepped back and watched all the young mutants walk out. "Quiet now, and gather around."

"_Quién__eres__?" _Enrique asked, approaching the new man.

He turned his helmeted head to the white-haired boy. _"Me llamo 'Dusk'. Estoy aquí ayudar."_

Enrique nodded, thinking only: _Just get me out of here._

"Quickly, quickly!" Dusk yelled softly, ushering the mutants around him. "It won't be long before they return. I am offering you all a place to stay, but if you wish we can try to get you back to your families. But if you stay with me you can learn to use your powers how _you_ want, and you won't have to fight again."

"What if we like fighting?" One gruff voice called out.

A smile reached Dusk's purple eyes. "Then there is still a place for you. You may compete in competitions… only if you wish."

There was the sound of pounding feet from the adjacent hallways.

"Is this everyone?"

The girl Tick nodded. "That's it for this facility. I can help you find the others."

"Great, then let's be off!" Dusk shouted, the shadows curling around all the figures in the group.

Blackness surrounded Enrique once again, but this was different than the one induced by Grey. He was aware that they were moving, and the world around him was cold. Suddenly his feet found the ground once again and he was astounded to find himself in a large stone cavern with rows of bench seats along the walls. It looked like a Roman arena, but with a modern twist. Industrial lights hung from the ceiling, illuminating the arena.

Dusk looked around at the group of new mutants. He removed his helmet, revealing a handsome young man in his twenties with jet black hair and eerie purple eyes.

"Welcome to the Haven."

* * *

**Tada! Yeah, random writing ideas!**

**So this is mainly read by D-Factor readers, and I have good news. I actually planned out the next five chapters. (Although one might be several parts long) There will be less Haven characters, but it's all part of the plan. And there'll be a lot more Brotherhood. Oh yeah, Magneto has a lot planned. WHAHA! Oh sorry, right... cliffhanger.**

**Anyways I was thinking about putting a lot more Spanish and then translations into this chapter, buuuut my Spanish is getting a little rusty.**

**Next is Xander, followed by the two Wolfes (who I might just put together in one mega chapter), and then the finale. CLAY DUNE! Stay tuned!**

(And thanks for all the reviews and special thanks to San child of the wolves, whose kind words helped me out. Hopefully I can get everything sorted out.)


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